Any Moment
by Rebel Paisley
Summary: It's the little things that build a relationship; it just takes a while for Dustin and Hunter to figure out what those things mean. And, you know, being a Power Ranger tends to complicate things. Loosely follows the series. Dustin/Cam, Shane/Hunter
1. Prologue

Any Moment

Chapter 1

Prologue

Disclaimer: I don't own power rangers, or anything remotely resembling power rangers, though my roommate does own the movie.

**NOTE:** For those of you who are first timers, first of all welcome, glad to have you. And second of all I am in the process of posting up a shorter, cleaner, but most importantly better version of this story titled "Any Moment Reprise". It will get you all your Cam/Dustin and Shane/Hunter needs in a faster and most likely more enjoyable fashion. I would suggest starting there. And then of course if you really want more you can come back and visit this lady, she'd be more than happy to entertain you.

This is a slow moving piece (kinda), so if you're looking for them to jump at each other in the first chapter it's not happening, I like to take things slow. It's an experiment for me, a way of deconstructing all the aspects of their relationship to see what makes it tick. It isn't going to be very action heavy. I mean, there may be some action, but it won't be intentional.

**UPDATE:** If you're really impatient, people start making out in chapter 30, though you might be a little confused about what's going on. But hey, if you like it, go back and catch up.

**SECOND UPDATE: **This is officially a Dustin/Cam, Shane/Hunter story. Ignore all author notes that say otherwise.

This chapter bounces between Dustin's and Cam's p.o.v.

Takes place during Thunder Strangers, Part 2-3

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Though Dustin was not sure of many things in his life, he couldn't deny the fact that their zord battle against the Thunder punks had not gone well.

Actually, that was an understatement of how it had gone if the sparking wires that had so nicely _not_ been sparking(or even visible) before the battle were any indication. His cockpit looked like a tornado had hit it, and he felt like he had gotten caught in it with all the thrashing that had been going on. Having the biggest zord wasn't looking like such a good thing now. Biggest zord equaled majority of the damage. That hadn't been much of a problem until now; but then again, they hadn't really gotten schooled until now.

No…that wasn't quite the right way to put it, they got owned. And not like kinda owned, but completely and totally owned, which is something he would've more worried about if his back wasn't throbbing so much.

He slowly craned his head to see the cause of his discomfort, which appeared to be a giant piece of metal that used to be a support beam… or something…it was probably important, and was probably something else he should be entirely more worried about _not_ being in its proper supporting place, but again, _back in major pain_…

The only bright side about this whole mess was at least _that_ (with their super hero healing-ness) would be fixed tomorrow.

His zord however, would probably not be so lucky.

So…Cam was gonna be _mad._ And not funny Cam mad, like after he switched Ninja Ops screensaver to these sick motocross pictures (he was just trying to share, you know, boost team morale) and he ranted/lectured for a little bit but it was still kinda funny, but like, _super,_ red, face-might-explode mad.

And that was not cool.

It wasn't even entirely their fault either.

Well… the part where they got beat up, _that_ might have been their fault, but the power disk interception thing…not cool man. That had to be like a foul or something. Sadly he didn't think that would really stop Cam from ranting at them, at least for a little bit. Cam did like his ranting. Sometimes Dustin thought he made up rules just so he can say they broke them so he could yell some more.

Okay… Cam probably didn't, but…maybe he should talk to him more…just in case.

That would be a really sad if that was the highlight of his day.

Another wire sparking to life near his face drew him out of his mental side trip and back into the battle zone. How had nothing worked against those guys? The serpent sword hadn't worked, and the megazord's lightning mode had done diddly against them and lighting mode was awesome. Doesn't lightning trump thunder? Thunder's just noise.

And there were only _two_ of them. Granted, they were two super angry-dudes with a chip on their shoulder, but having one more person should've counted for _something_.

They weren't _that_ bad.

He briefly wondered if they had seriously offended the Thunders by saving the world without inviting them, and maybe that's why they were mad, but if that had been the case wouldn't they have stopped fighting them after the first round of butt-kicking? Had the repeat performance really been necessary?

Timidly, he tried to shimmy his way out from under the beam to avoid being shocked by the mess that used to be his cockpit, but the thing wouldn't budge. His chair was stuck underneath it which had given him a little space, but it prevented him from backing up so he awkwardly kicked his right foot back to shove it out of the way. He was rewarded with a toppled over chair and the ability to move backwards, and then he was immediately punished by gravity pushing the beam down, securely trapping him against the console.

He could think of better ways to spend his evening.

He started to bring his morpher to his mouth to call for the others but noticed that it, like his zord, was trashed…so, it was waiting time…how was he still morphed?

It wasn't long though (Which was awesome because breathing was becoming a bit of an issue) before he heard the door open up behind him. He really hoped it was his team and not the other guys because right now he was a sitting duck…and really dumb looking, but the duck thing was the bigger issue…really. But seeing (or feeling, really) as the person (whoever it was) was attempting to pull the beam off instead of incinerate him; they were probably from his team, unless the Thunders liked to look you in the eye while they destroyed you, which given their track record, would be fitting. But they'd probably be taunting him too; it was like, in the rules.

"How well did you wedge this thing?"

It was Shane. Well, that was a relief, he'd just do the taunting and not the killing…and he was rather fond of the not killing…or destroying.

Tori was kind of touchy about wording.

"I didn't do anything!" he grumbled, gesturing vaguely in the red ranger's direction. "It was the guys shooting at us, it's not like I enjoy not breathing."

In fact he hated it, but Shane got what he meant, he was good with these kinds of things. That was one of his favorite things about Shane; he didn't really have to explain himself because the other could fill in the blanks, like he was supreme master of Dustin connect-the-dots.

Except thinking about it, actual connect-the-dots puzzles were really easy.

…So…he was easy?

Not cool.

"Your talking says you breathe just fine," the leader teased in return, and he heard Shane shift to get his shoulder underneath the beam. Pulling on it must not be effective. Maybe he'd have more luck then Dustin had. Sure, being oddly hunched over didn't really help with…leverage but he'd really been trying.

"That's because I'm awesome…and…morphed."

Which was only possible because of a higher power…i.e., Cam. He hoped they didn't power down soon, that would probably lower the chances of Shane getting the support off…and, you know, breathing.

Shane seemed to get the message though and tried jerking the thing to the side to give him some more space, "If you're so awesome, why don't you get yourself out?"

The bar stubbornly stayed in place. It must be working for the Thunders.

Hah… thunder beam.

"And miss spending quality time with you? No way, dude."

Also, awesome people have other people do things. Rules.

"Right," Shane grunted, oh, right, they were still talking, "perish the thought."

There was some shuffling outside the door and then a soft call, "Guys?"

It was Tori… so did that mean the bad guys had left the building? Good riddance. He had read about evil rangers in his comic books, but they were so much worse in real life.

There was some more shuffling, she was probably trying to avoid wires, something he wished he could do better right now, "Are you in there?"

"Yeah," Shane called back, "Dustin's trapped."

"And not by choice," He added, just so no one would be confused. Because confusion was their greatest worry right now, and not beam death.

Most certainly not beam death.

"Help me get him out," The red ranger ordered, giving another push.

It was a good thing Shane was the red guy, because even though Tori was going to help anyway Shane telling her to was encouraging, because then there was a plan, and plans were awesome.

If he had said that it would've sounded ridiculous.

With Shane pushing and Tori pulling it wasn't long before there was a little give. He hurriedly pulled himself down to duck under it…and got his helmet stuck…which was not an improvement…it was worse.

At least now he could see Shane, who was staring at him with a look of disbelief.

"You're kidding me," He smacked the side of his helmet, "You've got to be kidding me."

"I wish dude."

His face was only turning red because of the added pressure of the beam…that was it…it had nothing to do with him not thinking things through.

Nothing at all.

He gently started tugging his head down as far down as he could go, which wasn't much, and he and Shane start pushing up on the stupid hunk of metal. Powering down now would not equal happiness; in fact, it would probably equal unhappiness…for his head…and the team, and they'd have to get another ninja to replace him but since Lothor took them all that would be an issue. Unless Cam did it…could Cam fight?

Cam would probably be an awesome ranger. He shared this thought with his friends.

Clearly, Shane was not impressed with his observation, "Right. Great. Can we focus?"

Well, at least they cared.

So it was back to saving Dustin's head time. The brace finally shifted again and Dustin scrambled back, Tori pulling him along, over his discarded chair. It landed with a thud just as their morphers ran out of juice, powering them down. That was cutting it close.

He wondered if the morphers where broken if they still got enhanced healing (did that kinda thing stick with you?) he could feel the bruises pulsing from that stupid beam, and his head was really starting to hurt. It was ridiculous; he got his worst injury _after_ the battle? That was so lame.

_Curse you Thunder beam._

"Hey man, are you alright?" Shane asked, pulling the two of them up from the floor…and then making sure they stayed _off_ the floor.

It was a process that took longer then it probably should have due to the small space and the mess they had to avoid.

"If I say no will you carry me?" Dustin asked, silently begging him. That would be sweet; the effects of being thrown around like a ragdoll were really starting to get to him. Not-walking sounded excellent.

Tori smacked him on the arm as they exited the lion zord, "You almost got your head smashed in, take it seriously," She looked upset but he doubted it was because of his comment. Or at least, entirely due to his comment.

It was probably a girl thing.

"Take it easy Tori, it's been a long day for all of us."

Yeah, score point to the hawk dude. It was nice to always have someone have your back.

Shane looked at him pointedly, as though he could hear his thoughts. "And no, you're going to have to walk."

So…not entirely having your back. But the thought counted.

"Bummer."

He would live, but not walking would've been really nice. Shane, despite his earlier complaint, helped him along anyway, pulling his right arm over his shoulder as Tori led them away from their trashed zords.

"So," Shane started, readjusting his grip on Dustin's arm, "how mad do you think Cam's going to be?"

"Face explode," Dustin replied softly, ignoring the looks his two friends threw him as they made their way up the hill.

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The good news was that Cam actually hadn't been that mad. Frustrated, maybe, but not super mad, so there was only limited ranting. Dustin was pretty sure his head wouldn't have been able to take any more then limited. He didn't really understand Cam's techno speak, but it all boiled down to the morphers and zords fixing themselves.

He wished his bike could do that; it would give him a lot more free time.

Now, all they had to do was wait and hope the Thunder jerkfaces (or Lothor) didn't feel like attacking them in the mean time.

Unfortunately for Dustin no morpher equaled no healing so he was stuck sporting the bruises from yesterday, but it could be worse, he could've like, broken something.

Nothing that serious had happened to them yet but they hadn't been rangers long, maybe that was just around the corner.

Right now he was working on changing the oil of a bike in the back Storm Chargers. Shane was laid out on a work bench watching him, as per usual. It was an unspoken rule that when he wasn't busy doing his thing at the track and Shane wasn't busy at the skate park they would spend time together. It wasn't like they had a lot to talk about, and they couldn't exactly chat about ranger business in public, but it was their ritual, not that watching him work on bikes was exactly interesting. It was just…calming. Either they talked, or they didn't, but they usually enjoyed each others company.

Today however, Dustin's mind was occupied.

Something just didn't add up. They had them right there, on the ground, sparking and unable to get up, and the Thunder…dunders just left them there. Why? He might not have been the smartest guy around but he knew if you wanted to beat someone you actually had to…like, _beat_ them. That was the goal right? Well, they had them in right in the palm of their hand and they didn't do anything. Did they chicken out? Were they allowed to chicken out? It made his head hurt. He rubbed his face in confusion and was snapped out of his thoughts by a snicker across the room.

"What?" He grumbled, glaring at the source.

The red ranger smiled like a cat, pointing to the spot on his face he'd just rubbed, "You got a little something here."

His hands reached up before he could really think about it, but seeing Shane smile wider made him remember the whole oil changing thing. He quickly dropped his hands to stop from spreading more oil as the other burst out laughing.

"Only you would forget something like that man," Shane exclaimed, tossing him a towel.

His chuckles died off as Dustin attempted to remove the oil from his face, frowning as his hands left a trail of stains on the well-worn cloth, "Hey, are you okay? You're kinda spacing man."

Dustin glared at him as he attempted to find a clean spot of towel, "More then usual?" he asked, having difficulty cleaning off the oil he couldn't _see_.

"You're hopeless," Shane laughed, sitting up and jumping down from the bench. He strode across the room and grabbed the towel from him. "But don't change the subject. What's bugging you?" He continued, grabbing Dustin's arm and dragging him over to the sink.

Instead of ignoring him, which Dustin kind've wanted to, he decided to answer the red clad teen as he turned the sink on and wetted the towel.

"Don't you think it's weird they didn't finish us off? I've been thinking about it and it makes like, no sense."

Shane scrunched his face in concentration, grabbing his shoulder with his left hand and carefully trying to remove the oil stains with his right, "I thought about it too, and seeing as all it did was leave me confused, I decided just to be grateful they didn't bro."

If sandpaper was fabric, it would be this towel, rough and wet and a little scratchy.

"Yeah, but what if it's some great plan, you know, to lure us into a false sense of security?" Dustin questioned, involuntarily turning his head away when Shane got to close to his eye. Sandpaper in the eye was never fun, and neither was oil. Actually, all oil that wasn't in a bike seemed to be like that. Even car oil.

"Stop moving around," The other teen grunted, moving his left hand to grab Dustin's face. His hands weren't sweaty, which was good because sweaty hands were gross.

They were warm.

Dustin tried to remember the last time someone had grabbed his face that wasn't trying to pinch his cheek or something along those lines, but all he could come up with was that time in 3rd grade Shannon Everett had tried to kiss him during recess. Somehow _he_ was the one who had gotten in trouble. He wondered if he flagged Kelly down right now if he could get Shane in trouble.

How funny would that be, to have the red ranger, the guy who saved the world on a daily basis, be put in time out.

Maybe attempted kisses only got punished in middle school. Not that this was an attempted kiss...that would be weird.

He had known Shane for little over a year, and any issues they might have had with boundaries were quickly taken care of by spending ridiculous amounts of time together. It felt natural, like they had known each other since like…kindergarten or something but didn't have to go through the bonding process of eating paste or throwing rocks at girls or…whatever kindergartners do.

Maybe he was the only one who had thrown rocks.

He was broken out his stroll down memory lane by Shane whipping the towel away, "There, good as new."

Dustin gently rubbed the spot the others hand had been as Shane strolled back to the work bench, "And how could we get a false sense of security," he called over his shoulder, "They already proved they can beat us, what more could they want?"

As uneasy as the situation had left him, he couldn't really argue with that logic.

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While the morphers were more then capable of repairing themselves, Cam felt that a helping hand might speed the process forward just a bit more. Whatever he was speeding it up for he wasn't sure, but he _was_ sure that there would probably be another attack as soon as they were finished. So his goal was "just in the knick of time".

That seemed to be his goal around here a lot.

For once he had Ninja Ops to himself, which gave him plenty of time to contemplate the happenings of the past few days.

The extensive damage the Thunder Rangers had inflicted upon the Wind's zords was an issue, but not the biggest one. Comparatively, the two sets of morphers (the wind morphers and the Thunder morphers) were evenly matched, seeing as they had come from the same place, the difference then had to be _how_ they were used. The Thunders had a motive, and whatever it was, it was relentless. There was no other way they could so soundly defeat the Wind Rangers every time. It was almost frightening to imagine what could cause such outright fury towards another team of Power Rangers. The wearers themselves weren't naturally evil, they couldn't be, otherwise the power would never work for them. They were just _choosing_ an evil course of action, and something detrimental to their state of being had to happen to make them so easily discard their morals.

Or perhaps Cam was completely wrong, and they were just evil. He _did_ only have one set of morphers to study after all.

Yet, he was confident in his assessment. He vaguely wondered if there would ever come a time when Lothor escalated his actions to such a degree that the Wind Rangers felt those same emotions. If they become just as unstoppable, he wondered what the cost would be.

It wasn't a pleasant train of thought.

Thankfully he was interrupted from his musings by the sounds of someone descending the staircase; a glance up confirmed it to be Tori. Outwardly he didn't show it, but inside he couldn't help but smile because of the three of the chosen rangers Tori was the one he actually _liked_ talking to. It was disappointing that she had been dragged down in training by her two teammates (before this mess began); he had always felt she had so much more potential.

However this wasn't a leisure call, (they never were) apparently one of the new guys in town had injured himself attempting to rescue Tori, and seeing as it was a Lothor-related attack she decided to bring him here instead of a hospital.

Even if her actions were out of guilt it was probably for the best, it wasn't like the hospitals were equipped to deal with this sort of thing.

Grumbling, he followed her to the outskirts of the water fall were her fallen companion lay.

What was his name? It was one of the guys he had heard Dustin and Shane speaking about earlier, of that he was positive. It was irrelevant though, this guy obviously wasn't that bright. Tori had told him she was at the beach when the newest of Lothor's army had assaulted her and that Blake (_that_ was his name) had rode up on his bike and "saved" her. What had he been doing out there? According to what he had gleaned from Dustin's riding habits (a conversation that had more or less been thrust on him) one usually rode at the track, or through forest trails, so what had this cretin been doing at the beach?

Based on the doting looks Tori had been throwing the ever unconscious _Blake_ while he removed the cybernetic leeches that had rendered him in that state, he would say the boy was sweet on her. That might explain it. Or he was a stalker. Either way Cam decided he was not a fan of this guy. Tori was more then capable of handling the situation on her own, and he had probably just gotten in the way. So really his injury was well deserved.

He just wanted to play hero for his pretty damsel.

He couldn't really argue with that. Tori was pretty. She was smart, and not obnoxious, unlike _others_ from her age group. And to her credit she was also persuasive, convincing him not to inform his father about this transgression, if his father didn't already know about it.

But he got a kiss in return so that was nice. Chaste, on the cheek, but still nice.

Cam would never dare speak it aloud but he often felt lonely. Being the sensei's son had never helped his predicament, and the whole never-leaving-the-school thing proved disobliging as well. Now the only people he had constant contact with were the rangers and they treated him like an outsider, depending on him only for things like…well, like this. To say it was frustrating would be an understatement. He couldn't say they were bad company; he really couldn't, because he had never been given the opportunity to spend time with them outside their "working" environment.

As he kept vigil over Blake's inert body, he briefly wondered how much of that was his fault.

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There was nothing like a rush of adrenaline to take away all your worries. It was something about soaring through the air, dirt flying in all directions that made the day so much _better._ Whoever thought of combining high speeds with getting dirty was a genius. At least in Dustin's humble opinion. Just about everyone else thought it was crazy, and that made it even more fun. This sport was made for him.

Shane was the one that had suggested it, and he had to give it to his friend, when he was right, he was _right._ He had been a little afraid that he might be too distracted for riding (after the fiasco at work), but once he got his bike beneath him all that stuff just melted away. It was just him and the sky…and Shane, watching him be awesome with the sky. You would think his friend's presence might have added extra pressure for his tricks but for Dustin it was the exact opposite. He _loved _having an audience, especially when it was Shane because he could appreciate the distinct intricacies of what he was doing, as where Tori just lectured him for taking to many risks. Hey, you had to "go hard, or go home", and Dustin wasn't going home.

It was lonely there.

But in order to get the applause he knew was coming (that was something he could always count on Shane for) he would need to tear himself away from the world in the air he loved so much. It wasn't toy terribly hard though; basking in praise was a pretty strong motivation.

As he pulled off the track, he spotted Tori with Blake by her van…that actually made a lot of sense. Hunter had asked if he and Shane knew where Blake was earlier, and it figured he'd be with Tori. Or like, Tori would be with him. There was something going on there, he knew it… he just didn't know what it was. But he bet anything Shane did.

Normally Cam was the guy who knew it all, but when it came to stuff outside Ninja Ops it was all Shane. Good thing he was his best friend. Speaking of which…

"Dude you were sick out there!" The dark skinned teen exclaimed, patting him on the shoulder as he pushed his bike off the track towards the equipment van. "Much faster than last time."

Inside Dustin cheered, reveling in the compliments. This was his favorite part of practice when he brought the other along. He doesn't usually fish for flattery, but it felt so…nice. Like, warm and fuzzy nice. Better than hot chocolate. And it's not like he's going to get a big head about it, so no harm done.

"I know man, I was in the zone," He replied, his face breaking out into a giant smile. It was good to be appreciated.

"And so humble." The other joked, jabbing him lightly in the side.

"Hey, when you got it, you got it right?" He grinned, pulling off his helmet as they reached their destination.

Major downside to riding was helmet hair. It's not like he cared about his hair normally but with all the sweat and stuff the helmet always made it stick out in funky directions that kinda made him look like a Kelzak. But it wasn't like there were any girls to impress here.

"Now I wish you'd lose it," Shane tossed out as he leaned against the side of the van, firmly folding his arms across his chest.

"Hey!" He _had_ been doing awesome out there, so some bragging was expected. He was due.

"Joke man, that was a joke," Shane reassured, reaching forward to tousle Dustin's hair, then pulled back with quickly, crinkling his nose as he wiped his now sweat covered hand on the front of his sweatshirt.

What had he been expecting, Fabreeze?

"Oh…right," Dustin mumbled.

Joke…people do that. All the time. He rubbed his hand through his curls to get rid of the rest of his helmet head. You couldn't really get rid of it without showering, but it didn't hurt to at least try.

Further conversation was disturbed by a set of light footsteps coming up from behind them. Three guesses said it was Tori, finally done with Blake. Girls can talk for forever, like, hours and hours, about just one thing. The most he could talk about one thing (besides rangering and motocross) was maybe 10 minutes. But he ever commented on that to Tori though, no way, he liked his head just where it was thank you. Having girls mad at you was the worst. They were mean.

Shane grinned at Tori's approach, settling back in against the open back door of the van. "So, how's lover-boy?" he started, "Do I need to beat him up? Defend your honor?"

"Didn't we already do this before?" Dustin questioned, pausing before he chucked his helmet into the vehicle, "with the surfer guy? Moral of the story was to keep our mouths shut?"

They didn't even scare that guy off either; he and Shane just didn't know he was interested in Tori. That led to them getting majorly chewed out by their friend and _that_ was a day he did not want to repeat again.

Wait…lover-boy? "Dude, are you guys dating?"

She would've said something. Girls and the whole much-talking thing right? Or is that something you didn't talk about? He could never really tell.

"No, we're not dating, and no," she continued, turning to Shane who had a rather impressive smirk on his face. Shane had a great smirk, it was all _"in your face, I just powned you"_ kinda thing that really helped when they got in arguments…with other people, not each other.

"You may not beat him up. He actually saved me from one of Lothor's goons." That got their attention, Dustin paused in his loading and Shane pushed off the van to lean closer, "I'll tell you later. Look," she changed the subject, "Cam fixed our morphers." She opened her bag to reveal them in there not-destroyed glory. Cam must have been working double time because those things had been thrashed. He was like, super tech.

_We should totally get him a cape_ _to like, thank him for being awesome._

Like she could read his mind (and it wouldn't surprise him if she could) Tori carried on, "And remember to tell him thank you next time you see him, I think he's feeling a little under appreciated."

Well… that was freaky. Strapping his morpher back on made him feel whole again, like a part of him had been missing.

Thoughts of capes and missing pieces came to a halt as their morphers chimed. It was Cam saying something about a frog by a river? Was that a monster, or was Cam suddenly interested in amphibians?

Following the other two usually worked when he was confused, so, why change a good thing? With a grin, he followed the others to the mystery of the frog. Hopefully this fight wouldn't go as bad as the last one. Especially when it got to the zords.

_I've got my eye on you thunder beam._

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The complete one eighty the Thunder rangers had taken was, to understate it in a fantastical way, mildly disconcerting. The only way that Cam could even slightly comprehend _why_ they had done what they did was that they wanted the glory of taking the Wind rangers down themselves.

Except then they left halfway through the fight. So they weren't willing to commit entirely to that thought.

…So their assistance made zero sense.

Cam leaned back in his chair, taking a moment from monitoring the battle to rub the side of his head, a poor attempt to quell a growing migraine.

It was completely sporadic, and altogether against their apparent goal. Was the attack merely a ploy? An attempt to confuse the Winds in order to weaken them for a future attack? If that were the case the plan was only partially thought out, which didn't fit the Thunders method of operation, they always seemed to be prepared for any situation, which was but one of the many attributes that made them so deadly. Also, exasperating.

So when Cam heard what sounded like two individuals descending the stairs into Ninja Ops he should have been a little less surprised. _Should _have. Seeing as the only other people who knew where Ninja Ops _was_ were currently engaged in zord combat, it made sense. Turning away from his monitor, surprise turned to anger when the two revealed themselves to be none other then the Thunder Rangers, confidently waltzing in as though they had every right to be there. _That_ would explain why they didn't want to finish the fight. They had another goal in mind. He ignored the muffled cheers that rang out from behind him, victory was theirs.

At least for one battle.

The multiple questions of how they got in or even knew where _in_ was would have to wait, time wasn't exactly a commodity he had in a bountiful supply right now, and he needed to make decisions, fast. While he wasn't entirely helpless, Cam knew he had to be realistic. If three morphed wind rangers with full bells in whistles couldn't take care of these hooligans odds were significantly low _he_ could do anything to them. What he _could_ do then, was buy enough time for his better equipped friends to take care of the issue. And he had just the thing to do it, that is, if he could outrun them.

Without waiting for an explanation (if there was going to be one, he seriously doubted they came to chat, and he wasn't sticking around to find out) Cam shot out of his chair and bolted to his right, down a hallway that led to his lab. The sounds of laughter were his only confirmation the two had paid him any heed. He blocked that out and continued his sprint.

He had been tinkering in the brief moments of his spare time on a new kind of blaster. He had never intended it to actually make the battle field but it had been a good side project to work on whenever he hit a brick wall with his other duties.

He didn't bother glancing behind him to check his distance; they had let him get a head start. He hoped their cockiness would be their undoing.

The weapon wasn't anything fancy, really it was just a glorified stun gun, but in theory it would have a nasty kick. Hopefully, it would be nasty enough. Actually he was more hopeful it would _fire_; he hadn't gotten around to testing it yet.

To his credit he made it to the door of his lab before he heard them give in to the chase. He made it about halfway to the table his project was sitting on before they made it into the room. The navy one attacked first, but if he thought Cam was going down without a fight he was sadly mistaken. His first retaliation, a kick to the stomach, had the advantage of surprise, an advantage that was completely nullified by its utter inefficiency. It was like kicking a rock. It was like kicking a smarmy rock that simply laughed at you in your not-rock glory. He hoped that someone kicked this guy in the head. Hard.

The crimson one had taken to watching the "fight", if it could be called that from his position in the doorway. He lounged against it, making no attempt to help his partner. As much as Cam was starting to despise the navy one, he was becoming to hate the Crimson one more, simply on principal. Smug incarnate.

He now had the option of turning his back on his opponent in an attempt to grab at something that _might_ be able to do some kind of damage, or continue to entertain the two and buy time. How long would they stay interested? How long until they fought back?

A laugh from Crimson made up his mind. It was time to really fight. He pushed himself in reverse until his back hit the table and reached out blindly with his left hand, all the while keeping his eyes on Navy.

Cam didn't even get his hand near his project before the shorter of two evils decided that enough was enough. He grabbed Cam's right shoulder and yanked him forward, twisting his arm behind his back as Cam stumbled past him. The Crimson one glided to his left side, placing his hand on his shoulder and steering him out the door.

There, minor inconvenience over, as though it was entirely part of the plan. Externally Cam schooled his face to be calm as they twisted his other arm behind his back, but inside he seethed.

So they had him caught. What worst could they do?

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The tension inside the mobile command center was thick, with Cam monitoring their progress in the front and Shane quietly talking to Tori in the back, Dustin had taken to hovering behind Cam.

It had been Blake and Hunter the whole time. He wondered how hard they must've laughed at his attempts to be friends with them. How far beneath them they must think he is. He felt so…used. Like there was this empty feeling inside that hurt. If he avoided thinking about it it went away. If only for a little bit.

Tori probably felt worse then he did. It wasn't like one of them tried to woo him.

For what felt like the hundredth time that day Dustin sighed and continued his pacing behind Cam. He wasn't good at the whole talking thing but he could at least like, physically be there for him. Even if Cam didn't acknowledge him.

Dustin glanced back at Shane and Tori once more. He wouldn't lie, when he started being friends with those two he was afraid they would do exactly what Blake and Hunter did and think of him as more of a joke then a friend, especially Shane. Girls didn't "scare" him as much. Somehow he just wasn't good at the whole friendship thing, like, people he thought were his friends were really just using him for something, so when he found his fellow ninjas it felt too good to be true. Only time made him more sure of himself. But now the whole process had started over again.

They had taken sensei. They, in their evil-rangerness stole sensei for unknown purposes, but they were probably going to try and destroy him, because they were evil like that and that's just how they rolled.

_Jerks_.

Turning, he decided to take his thoughts elsewhere.

"Are we almost there Cam? I'm freaking out over here," he blurted, leaning over Cam's left shoulder to get a better view of the screen. He didn't really understand it, but it was distracting.

"You're freaking out? It's _my_ father they took." Cam groused, frowning at the yellow ranger.

"I'm sorry, it's just…" he trailed off, rocking back on his heels as he subconsciously adjusted his gauntlets, "shouldn't I have noticed? I know I'm not that observant but…"

"Hey," he was cut off by Shane's shout from the back, "enough of that. This isn't anyone's fault but Blake and Hunter's," Briefly, he held Shane's gaze as a wave of relief wash over him.

He could tell himself that as much as he wanted but it never really made a difference until Shane said something about it, it was a part of their friendship he never took for granted. The other probably didn't even know how much it meant to him.

Out of the corner of him eye he saw Cam relax, not much, but it still counted. See, red guy power in action.

It had probably been an awful day for him. Work, work, work on the morphers, then get sneak attacked by the Thunder goons, and _then_ have them kidnap his father.

Totally bad day. He wished there was something more he could do.

Dustin turned to face him as the others got in position on their bikes, "We'll get him back Cam." he promised, crossing his heart. That earned him a tight frown from the tech. Frowns were bad, so Dustin went with his next logical choice to making someone feel better and tackle hugged him, which was a little awkward because he was standing and the other was sitting, but a hug was a hug.

Cam pushed him off and turned back to the console, but couldn't hide a small smile that was on his face. Mission partially accomplished, Dustin grinned and got on his bike, completely missing a look of surprise from Shane.

_Alright, time to get the bad guys._

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End Notes:

The title of this story (for those of you who wonder) is actually from a musical I'm rather fond of called _Into the Woods_, I feel it corresponds with this tale well. On the cd it's actually a combination of two songs, "Any Moment/Moments in the Woods", and both are awesome.

I don't own _Into the Woods_

I was originally going to start when the whole team got together but when I was re-watching the series I was inspired by the aftermath of the zord battle with the Thunders, so I started writing there.

Until next time.


	2. Getta Loada Toad

Chapter 2

Getta Loada Toad

This chapter takes place between the Thunders leaving and the very beginning of episode 8, "No Where to Grow".

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_That_, Dustin thought, _that entire business was a mess._

The whole Thunder brothers kidnapping/revenge/continuous jerkface-ness business. The whole, let's fight each other, no let's fight _together_, no, let's go back to fighting each other confusing… _thing_ where everything kept changing so fast that it made his head spin. _That_ business. And why had it happened?

They (somehow) had thought Sensei had killed their parents, which was whack because anyone who had spent more then five seconds with sensei would know that he would never do that. Seriously, five seconds, that's all it would take. Now obviously, Hunter and Blake had spent much more then five seconds with him (remember, the whole kidnapping thing) but their minds had already been made up so… that didn't count. Obviously. It was a shame though; they could've saved themselves a lot of trouble.

They had said that Lothor had been convincing. Hopefully that was the case. It wouldn't be cool if they just enjoyed beating people up.

And by people, he meant _him_.

But what's done is done, and the two had skipped town. They didn't really give a reason why (it wasn't their fault they were tricked), but they would probably be back. They were Power Rangers after all, they always came back in the comics.

That didn't stop Tori from being bummed. Not that she would say anything about it. She must've seriously had a thing for Blake.

It was because he was little. Girls loved little things, like puppies, and purses, and those tiny cupcakes…that had to be it.

He had charmed her with his midget ways.

With everything that had been happening Dustin had almost forgotten that he was going to get something for Cam. He _had_ done an awesome job. He had earned it.

The problem was what to get him. It was a tricky thing. Dustin knew he couldn't get him any kind of technical gadget (because he didn't know anything about that stuff and knowing himself he would probably get Cam something he already had…or something that was completely useless… or something he didn't _want_). And there weren't any costume shops in town, and he couldn't sew, so he couldn't get him a cape like he originally planned.

It would've been so cool to see Cam in a cape.

Dustin had been walking home from Storm Chargers the day after they had cleared everything up with Blake and Hunter when inspiration had finally struck.

…or, was finally _heard_.

Ribbits that usually blended in with the white noise of the suburbs brought him back to the frog monster they had fought after Cam had fixed their morphers.

That was it! It was genius, it really was.

He would get Cam a frog. That way the dude would have company when they weren't there, and frogs were totally green which was Cam's favorite color. Well…that was more of a guess, but there had to be a reason he wore it all the time. It was perfect. He wasn't sure if pet stores sold frogs, but even if they did he still wanted to catch one. _Sooo_- much more fun. A quick look online told him they hung out in ponds and creeks and you could catch them with butterfly nets. He didn't have a net, but he managed to find a jar he could put it in (for temporary purposes of course, frogs had to have room to hop, otherwise why have a frog?), and a quick look through his attic produced an old fish tank for a real home and he was in business.

The website had said that they didn't actually live in water (so he couldn't just top the tank off), but suggested that they still be given an area to swim in. So, following the instructions to a degree that impressed even himself, he packed one side of the tank with dirt and put a little plastic divider in the middle to separate the land from the "sea". He filled the other side with pond water. Now all that was left was the frog.

Which lead to today, Thursday, the almost-greatest day of the week (the greatest being Friday).

Side by side, he and Shane walked quickly to the creek that was near his house. Frog catching was made infinitely better by the presence of his best friend. Probably. He didn't really know from experience but being with Shane made most things better. And it wasn't like Shane had any other plans, all he was going to do _before_ was practice his skateboarding. The red ranger wanted to make a demo tape but wouldn't do it until all his moves where _just_ right. In Dustin's opinion Shane's moves were already awesome so he didn't need the extra practice. And to make a demo tape you had to have a camera, which neither one of them had.

He would've invited Tori but she had mentioned something about catching up on homework, and he didn't want to bother her (even if it was her loss).

"Why a Frog?"

Until now their trek had been silent, grass and moist dirt from the rain shower earlier squishing beneath their worn out sneakers as they neared their destination. They were in their most casual of attires, with all the weather that come their way it was bound to be muddy. For Dustin this wasn't a problem, and because he was Dustin's best friend, it wasn't a problem for Shane either. Eventually you _had_ to get used to something that was such a big part of someone.

But back to the matter at hand.

"Dude, it's so perfect. He gets a present _and_ a friend," he confided, turning his head left towards the red ranger.

Not that Cam didn't have friends (they were totally Cam's friends), he just wanted him to have company for when they weren't there.

Shane met his glance with an amused expression, and though the gesture was normal enough Dustin had to fight back the empty feeling that was beginning to build in his stomach. He trained his eyes back to the creek, only a few minutes away.

Shane wasn't like his old friends. He wasn't a joke. Shane wasn't humoring him…he wouldn't do that.

The world continued.

"And a fish can't do that?" Shane questioned, same voice.

The voice was warm. It was happy. It wasn't mocking.

Just like that, everything returned to normal.

Dustin's smile widened as his excitement began to return. "Fish are boring, and frogs are green man," he started, sharing a knowing look with Shane. Obviously he wasn't the only one who noticed the one shade wardrobe. "And like, every time it ribbits he'll totally think about how much we appreciate him. It's perfect."

Ribbits of love. It sounded like a cheesy kid's song. He could see it.

"Whatever you say man," Shane teased, "lets just hope it isn't to loud, don't want your plan to backfire and give Cam a headache."

…He hadn't thought of that. A surge of panic coursed through him and caused his hands to tighten around his temporary-frog-house jar. He whipped his head back around to face Shane, one question after the other jumbling in his mind and attempting to pour out his mouth at the same time.

"What? Do you think that could happen? He could just…well… if it got that bad… he could…"

"Dude, watch it!" Shane urged just as Dustin's right foot slipped, making his body jolt right at an odd angle.

In his frenzy he hadn't noticed they had made it to the creek and had failed to stop before the ground started to dip down to meet the water. He felt Shane's hands wrap around his forearm and yank him back before he fell, pulling him back a few steps and bringing them shoulder to shoulder.

Dustin rubbed his arm and grinned sheepishly at his friend, forcing the panic back down. "Thanks, man."

"You're welcome," Shane sighed, bringing his right hand up to comfortingly pat him on the back before wrapping it around his shoulders. "And I was just joking, Cam will like it."

"Of course," Dustin boasted, puffing his chest out. "It'll be from us, he has to like it."

They were forced words but hey, when worst comes to worst, fake it. It usually works.

"I highly doubt if we made him a paperweight out of Popsicle sticks he would like it." Shane joked, briefly squeezing his shoulder.

"He would if it was green."

That earned him a burst of laughter and a smile.

It was good to be entertaining for the right reasons.

Still, as much as he loved amusing his friend he was pretty sure silence (or at least an attempt at silence) was important when frog hunting, so he ducked closer to Shane and whispered, "Dude, we have to be quiet."

Shane's grin widened and he lowered his head down next to Dustin's to continue their quiet conference, secret agent like.

"Why man? Can frogs even hear?"

"Well, we have to be prepared for any situation," Dustin replied, eying the medium amount of water in the creek. "Let's check the water first, I bet they're in there."

"What about the grass? I can hear them now." Shane emphasized this by pointing to random spots in the grass, like he could hear where they were coming from.

Dustin decided to stick to his guns. He would not be won over by random gesturing.

No matter how convincing Shane did it.

"That's probably just the small ones, and we want a big guy." He bet all the cool frogs hung out in the creek. And cool equals big. At least that's how it worked in middle school.

"Does it matter?" Dustin stared at Shane as though it was the most obvious thing in the world. Because it kind've was. He wouldn't have mentioned it otherwise.

"More frog equals more love. Basic science."

"You mean math? And does that apply to number of frogs?"

"No, just one frog, we don't want to overwhelm Cam."

"I think he'll be fine."

"We're going to be thoughtful."

"Okay, just one frog."

Triumph was a sweet, sweet thing.

"Alright, let's do this ninja style." He shared one last grin with his partner in crime before he turned and slowly crept down to the creek water. It was dark and murky, but near the middle he could just make out things moving around under the surface.

_Jackpot_.

He twisted the lid (that he had so thoughtfully poked holes into) of the jar off and placed it on the ground silently, all the while keeping his movements as slow and smooth as he could. Shane eyed him with amusement and then looked back at the water, eying the shadows. Slowly he leaned over the creek (so as to not startle the frogs) and moved his hands out spread apart over the water, Dustin copied him.

Frog catching position assumed.

Both held still, waiting calmly for the moment one of the blobs swam close enough to be snatched up.

There! Dustin quickly plunged his hands into the water to catch his froggy prey. But just as he got his hands under it, it attempted to swim out of his reach. Sooo- not happening. This guy was perfect, he was big, and definitely a frog, and… perfect. He had some nerve attempting to challenge the yellow ranger, didn't he know yellow ranger doesn't lose?…except for sometimes. But sometimes wasn't now.

Dustin followed along with the frog, pushing himself forward and successfully trapping it between his hands. For a moment, all was right with the world. And then in the following moment, everything was wet with the world. Sputtering he pulled himself out of the water, spitting out whatever creek germs had gotten into his mouth. Shane gave up ninja stealth for laughing, clutching his left hand to his side.

He somewhat redeemed himself by offering Dustin the jar in his right hand.

Dustin glanced down to see that he had managed to keep a hold of his frog in the spill and gladly shoved the thing into the jar, willing it far away. Shane twisted the lid back on it to seal off its escape. He wondered what Cam would name it. Probably a smart-ish sounding name like Phillip or Fergusson or…Leonard.

Leonard actually wasn't that bad.

Shane's laughter died down as he set the jar on the ground. He turned and offered his hand to Dustin.

"Ninja style, huh?" he smirked, full smug face on.

He stopped smirking when Dustin grabbed his hand and pulled him into the creek with him, making sure they were both thoroughly drenched.

See, today wasn't sometimes.

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Mission accomplished, they made a quick stop at Dustin's house to change out of their soaking clothes before they got ready to deliver Cam's present. Dustin didn't even try to hide his smirk. Shane grumbled at the lack of red in his borrowed wardrobe but he would get no pity from _this_ guy.

He shouldn't have laughed.

Originally Dustin had planned to give Cam his present at training the next day, but Shane's comment (even if it was just a joke) had made him rethink that idea. He decided to ease Cam into owning frog-gift. And by ease into, he meant leave it in Ninja Ops when Cam was out so he could find it later…when _they_ weren't there. That way, if he didn't like it he could get rid of it before training and they could all act like it never happened. Or the frog would be so awesome that Cam would grow to love it before training.

Either way, win-win.

Shane, did not agree.

"First of all, when does Cam leave Ninja Ops? And second, what if..." he waved his hands in the air, like he was grabbing for an idea or something, "What if he thinks it's one of Lothor's plans?" That was the best he could come up with? Dustin could only stare at him in confusion, because the whole evil frog thing had already been done. Lothor had to have at least like, 20 other evil plans before he started doing repeats.

He decided not to voice this opinion when he saw that Shane had his leader-face on.

The leader face (while mostly used for actually leadering and things like that) was also used when Shane was trying to hide his concern. So really Shane was just worried about…_something_ and it was Dustin's job to soothe his fears.

Whatever they were.

This time it was simple. "We'll just leave a note."

"Yes, it'll say, "Not from Lothor"." Shane suggested, crossing his arms across his chest in an irritated manner.

What was wrong with the plan? This was a good plan! …okay, so it was a cowardly plan, but it would work and that's what counted.

"We'll sign it! Look, I'm going to sneak it in, are you with me or not?"

Shane sighed and flicked the red bow Dustin had enthusiastically taped to the side of the "frog" tank, trying, and most likely failing to ignore Dustin's famous "puppy dog eyes". Dustin didn't usually resort to them; it seemed almost unfair to use them because if there was one guarantee in life it was that Shane could not resist "the puppy dog eyes". Dustin couldn't blame him, puppies were cute. It was like, a universal truth.

Tori would agree with him.

"Fine."

Dustin grinned at his victory and launched into a hug, squeezing Shane and releasing him with an _"oof"_ before turning and digging through the mess on his bed to find his phone. They would definitely need backup to sneak frog in.

And a ride. They would definitely need a ride.

"This time," he began, as he punched Tori's number in. "This time we'll use ninja stealth."

Shane smiled back at him, "Because that worked so well last time."

He paused in his dialing to glare at him, "Shut up."

Shane smiled wider.

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It had taken some convincing, a little yelling (on her part not theirs), and a promise not to leave her out of any future plans (she should at least be given the option to turn them down, thank you very much) before the third musketeer was on board for plan "sneak-Cam-the-frog". He hadn't thought Tori would be that upset for missing out on the dirty part, and she probably wasn't but…well, he should probably be nice to her just in case.

He didn't want to mess anything up.

It wasn't until they were halfway to Ninja Ops before Tori noted a rather big flaw in Dustin's plan.

"So, how are you going to distract Cam?"

"What?" Dustin asked, snapping out of his daydream (he'd been at the track, with Shane of course). He looked up from his seat in the back to see Tori looking at him through the rear view mirror.

"You said you're going to sneak it in, right? That means Cam can't be in the room, so how are you going to getting him out?"

Shane watched them silently from the passenger seat with a small smile. He knew what was coming next.

"Well…" the yellow ranger started, slowly scratching his head, "I hadn't actually thought of that yet."

"Seriously?" Tori exclaimed, sounding less then pleased.

"Hey, come on I came up with the whole frog idea, can't one of you guys think of a Cam distraction?" He wasn't even that good at planning, he was surprised he had gotten this far.

"What would make Cam leave the main room?" Shane interrupted, leader-face on (this time for actual leadering).

Queue brainstorming time.

"Bathroom?" Dustin suggested, momentarily forgetting his earlier complaint. The other two stared at him.

"Are you suggesting we just wait around until Cam needs to use the bathroom? That could take hours." Tori said, clearly displeased with waiting. She was supposed to be the patient one.

"We could give him water." That ought to cheer her up, water was her thing.

"I think Cam would notice if we tried to force feed him water."

"Wouldn't it be like, force-drink?"

"Not the point."

"What about the Tsunami cycles?" Shane broke in, squeezing Tori's shoulder briefly. For…comfort? This conversation wasn't that stressful.

"They don't need water dude."

Shane looked him with an unreadable expression before he continued. "I meant," He began, taking his hand off Tori's shoulder, (where it shouldn't have been in the first place). "That we," he pointed at himself and Tori, "could tell Cam we were having issues with the Tsunami cycles."

"Oh, I see," Tori chirped, smile reappearing. "Then he takes us to the bikes to see what's wrong and Dustin sneaks the tank in."

"Dude that's awesome!" Dustin exclaimed, bouncing in his seat.

Being apart of a team was the best, he never would have thought of something like that on his own.

He tried to look at that positively.

But… "There's nothing wrong with the bikes."

Shane waved it off like it was a minor detail. "Well, you know that, and I know that…"

"I bet Cam knows that to." Tori goaded, a knowing look on her face.

"Look, we just have to get him out of the room. We'll play dumb when everything works, and we'll be fine." Shane looked back and forth between the two of them. "Are we good?"

Dustin nodded with Tori. They were good.

As best as they could be, at least.

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Dustin lagged behind Tori and Shane as they approached the entrance of Ninja ops, frog tank in hand. He double checked everything one last time (this was something he did for everything because he tended to be forgetful…at least, when he remembered to).

Bow? Check.

Frog? Check.

Lid? Check?

Dirt and water for a good frog habitat? Check.

Note…note! He'd forgotten about the note. Of course he'd forget the note!

…Wait…Shane had the note in his pocket. That's right, they had made it earlier (at Dustin's insistence) and Shane had kept it so Dustin wouldn't… forget it.

Irony?

Dustin looked up from the tank to ask Shane to give him the note back in time to see said red ranger holding it in front of his face. Smiling, he took it back, tucking it next to the bow and with a nod to Tori and Shane (a good luck nod because silence is golden) he ducked behind the rubble that was outside the Ninja Ops entrance, on the side farthest from the mobile command center where the Tsunami cycles were.

He waited quietly, crossing his fingers for Shane and Tori. Hopefully Cam would buy Shane's idea. He felt a little bad for lying (well, encouraging lying) to Cam. He knew that they didn't talk that often; well, he did _try_ but Cam never seemed to want him (or Shane) around, but Cam was still part of the team. A super important, Lothor-would-have-probably-taken-over-the-world-if-not-for-him, part of the team and he didn't deserve to be lied to.

Dustin had a sudden thought. What if he thought they were making fun of him? Like they had run out of things to do and decided to pull a fast one on him to pass time? Dustin knew from experience that never left you with a good feeling. No, Cam was smart enough to know they would never do that. Or like, Tori would never do that. (The guy had a soft spot for Tori, even if he wouldn't admit it.) And then he'd see the tank and everything would be happy.

The silence was broken as the door to Ninja Ops slid open Cam's voice carrying into the forest.

"What are you suggesting, that I'm incapable of repairing you bikes?" Cam sounded annoyed, climbing the stairs at a rapid pace. At least they managed to get him outside.

"That's not it at all Cam, we just want to see if the bugs…" Dustin could practically hear Cam glare at Tori, "…if the issues we were having were really gone, that way if they were still there you could see for yourself."

"We're just trying to be responsible." Shane added patting Cam's shoulder as the headed toward the mobile command center.

When they were far enough away Dustin streaked into Ninja Ops, coming to a halt in the main room.

Now, where to put it…he probably should have thought of that beforehand…Cam's lab! That way, it was personal. And it wouldn't be so obvious that Shane and Tori were just decoys. He happily waltzed down the hallway that led to the lab, making sure not to jostle frog-gift to much (it had made it though ninja streaking but Dustin didn't want to push his luck). The door to Cam's lab was open and didn't appear to have any high-tech security measures on it (he paused to look just in case) so obviously luck wanted Cam's present to go in the lab to.

Dustin found a table near the center of the lab and positioned the tank so that it could be clearly seen from the door and stepped back to admire his handiwork, but only for a little bit, Cam wouldn't be distracted for long.

He was just about to streak out to Tori's van (the agreed meeting place) when he spotted, on a table next to a pile of wires, a camera bag.

Curiosity got the better of him and he peaked inside to that yes, it was a video camera.

He felt all the pieces coming together as he glanced at his watch. It wasn't too late, sure it was almost dark but the night was still young. Shane had all his gear…and he bet Cam wouldn't mind if he borrowed his camera to film Shane's demo tape. It was just for one night, and then he would return it and Cam wouldn't even notice.

Unless he was in the lab when he returned it. Then he would probable notice.

...He'd just wait for him to use the bathroom.

Mind made up, he grabbed the bag and streaked out of Ops, eager to share his change of plans.

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So…it hadn't been the greatest distraction. It wasn't bad; it had gotten the job done, but still…not the greatest distraction. The greatest would have been if Cam hadn't noticed it was a distraction. And Cam had noticed. At least, he knew something was up and it had nothing to do with the Tsunami cycles. Still, he and Tori had stuck to the plan and feigned innocence when the bikes worked perfectly (like they always did) and continued home, apologizing before they left and making their way towards Tori's van.

Hopefully Cam wouldn't read too much into it…

...who was he kidding, it was Cam. Of course he would read into it, it was his nature. He probably thought they were toying with him for kicks or something.

Guy had trust issues.

It didn't matter though; they had bought Dustin enough time to put their gift… wherever it was Dustin chose to put it. For all he knew it could be the bathroom. It would make about as much sense as the rest of this plan.

Not that it was bad…Dustin's spontaneity was one of his greatest qualities, at least in Shane's opinion. It made life a heck of a lot more interesting. Actually, Dustin seemed to make everything more interesting without even trying, it was just in his nature. He didn't even know it.

Tori shared a grin with him, looping her arm around his as they walked. She hadn't been totally for this plan, (kind of like he had been at the start) but it had grown on her, just like it had grown on him. He had been concerned when Dustin told him he wanted to sneak it in. He had put all this work into it and Shane wanted Cam to recognize that immediately. But if this is what Dustin wanted, he couldn't say no.

He could never really say no.

Shane wished he could be there to see the look on Cam's face when he saw the tank. No, he wished he could be there when he opened the note. The note was a work of art.

"You know, when I said to thank Cam I never really pictured this."

Shane grinned and nodded, agreeing with Tori wholeheartedly. When Dustin had called and told him he wanted his help to get Cam a gift he had thought they were going to hit the mall or Best Buy. It only figured he'd end up drenched in a creek.

"I can see getting Cam a gift, but I'm not sure where the whole frog thing came from. But it makes him happy." Shane replied, digging his hands into the pockets his borrowed sweatshirt.

He didn't have to say it made them happy. Happy Dustin always made them happy.

Through the gaps in the trees Dustin came into view, leaning against the van, hands behind his back. As soon as he spotted them he began to wave frantically with his right hand, and then gesture at some bag he held in his left. In his wonderment of exactly where the bag came from he almost missed Tori's whisper.

"It was a good idea."

"Yeah," he whispered back, smiling at Dustin's enthusiasm, "it was a good idea."

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With the way this evening had gone it really shouldn't have surprised him when they ended up at the skate park.

Dustin, in his magical way, had discovered a video camera in Cam's lab when he had dropped off "frog-gift", and insisted that tonight was as good a night as any to film his demo tape. Shane didn't even want to think about how mad Cam was going to be when he discovered what had happened, but with the damage done he might as well make the best of it.

When Tori began to protest (a front really, they both knew this was happening) that it was a school night Dustin simply reminded her how upset she had been about missing out on frog hunting.

He was just trying to make it up to her.

The ridiculous thing was that Dustin actually _meant_ it. If anyone else had said that, if _he_ had said that, Tori would have just blown it off as sarcasm.

But this was Dustin. And if Dustin was anything, it was honest.

That meant Dustin felt bad about leaving Tori out earlier, which was normally something he wouldn't think twice about, so…

Shane sighed mentally. The whole ordeal with Blake and Hunter must have left Dustin more shaken up then he wanted to admit. Shane had forgotten how wary Dustin had been around him and Tori in the beginning. It had taken a couple of weeks of constant reassurance before they managed to get him to open up. If something like this was bothering him now…Shane needed to nip this in the bud. He didn't want Dustin closing in on himself again. He wasn't sure if the team could take it.

He wasn't sure if _he_ could take it.

But with all the effort Dustin had taken to get the camera he would wait until later to talk to him. For now they would enjoy themselves.

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Cam stared.

Then (just to be sure) he took off his glasses and carefully cleaned the lenses with the edge of his shirt, taking expert care to get rid of any smudges (as if a smudge could do this).

Process complete, he replaced his glasses.

The tank was still there.

He had thought, no, he had _known_ something was amiss when Shane and Tori had made that pointless visit, dragging him away from his work. And what did they want him to check up on? Nothing. A whole load of nothing. That's what it turned out to be, because absolutely nothing was wrong with the Tsunami cycles.

This reminded him of something…what was it? Oh, that's right, it reminded him of earlier, when he had checked on the Tsunami cycles after the fight and found out that there was absolutely _nothing_ wrong with them. Just exactly how bored had they been that they decided they needed to bother him? And if they were going to waste his time they could at least think of a decent excuse. They owed him that much.

It wasn't until after they had left, disgustingly pleased with themselves (for no good reason) that he realized that there was something bigger going on.

He should have figured it out when Shane showed up without Dustin, because _that_ never happened. In fact, if they were having legitimate issues with the bikes at all (not that they were, but hypothetically) it would make infinitely more sense for them to go to Dustin first.

But back to the matter at hand.

There was a tank. A tank with a bulky red bow that had at the very least 12 pieces of tape haphazardly holding it in place. He didn't even have to read the note that had been strategically stuffed into the bow to know whose handiwork this was. It had Dustin written all over it.

So Shane and Tori had been decoys.

Seeing as it wasn't going to go away anytime soon (he could only hope) Cam decided to take a closer look at this…thing that was taking up prime space on his favorite table. It was an old fish tank with what appeared to be a make-shift lid of cardboard taped on top. It didn't quite cover the entire tank, but left two small slits on its sides for…air?

Cam bent over and studied the contents of the tank. It had been divided down the middle, one side packed with dirt and the other with pond water and there, perched on the edge of the water, was a frog.

A frog.

Through this, Cam managed to discern one thing. Dustin had a convoluted thinking process.

As he straightened back up he grabbed the note out of the bow and steeled himself for whatever its contents may express. Carefully, he unfolded the wrinkled sheet of notebook paper. The bold chicken scratch read as such:

**TO: CAM**

**FROM: NOT LOTHOR**

**(SHANE, DUSTIN, AND TORI)**

**THANKS FOR THE HARD WORK. WE APRECEATE IT.**

**PS. YOU SHOULD NAME HIM LEONARD**

Truly, a stimulating read.

He tried not to cringe at the blatant spelling errors. It was a good thing Dustin lived in the age of spell check. He probably wouldn't go far otherwise.

A quick patter of feather light footsteps carried into the room was the only warning Cam had before his father landed on the lab table next to his…gift. His father made a cursory trip across the front of the tank to consider what was inside before he chose to speak.

"Ah, so that is what Dustin snuck in here."

"You saw this happen?" And he didn't stop him? Or at least ask him what it meant?

"Yes, but I didn't want to interrupt. It seems he put a lot of work into this."

"It's a frog." He grunted, glaring at the subject of their conversation with distaste. It stared back blankly.

"It is a gift." His father reminded him, small arms folding behind his back.

A moment of quiet drifted over them as they contemplated the frog… or at least, as Cam contemplated the frog. There had to be some significance.

His father broke the silence.

"What is its name?"

Cam glanced back down at his note, squinting at the bottom line.

"Leonard, apparently," Cam frowned "It's a stupid name."

He forced his eyes away when his father looked up at him, knowing full well he disapproved of his comment, but he wouldn't take it back.

It _was_ a stupid name. It was a stupid gift. Why a frog? He had given no indication, no hint no…nothing that he even had a predilection towards that specific kind of amphibian, let alone a desire to own one.

But somehow…he wasn't sure how (this was Dustin after all), somehow it fit.

And somehow…it made him feel a little more apart of a team.

Not that he would ever tell them.

He carefully folded the note back up and placed it on the table before he turned and went over to his computer, settling himself in for some light research.

If he was going to keep this thing, he should probably learn what it ate.

* * *

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Endnotes:

There, I decided to throw in some Shane in the Shane/Dustin story. I originally intended more for this chapter but Dustin's part dragged on way longer then I thought it would. So...that's why there's minimum Shane. Sorry.

I have decided to name each chapter after a song from a musical because it makes me happy.

So…I don't own _A Year With Frog And Toad_. Just Saying.

Until next time.


	3. It Sucks to be Me

Chapter 3

It Sucks to Be Me

I apologize for the delay; I took a week off to study for finals.

Takes place during "Nowhere to Grow"

I don't own Avenue Q.

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* * *

There are moments (there _have_ to be these moments) in people's lives where they stand back and say, "_Hey, how did I get here?"_

_"What strange turn of events led to me living this moment in this exact way with this exact…clothing?"_

Like, the choices we make.

For example, choosing to make toast for breakfast instead of eating cereal. Well, those actually take about the same amount of time with prep and clean up so maybe that wasn't the best example to pick so….how about grabbing a muffin, instead of eating cereal? That would work. You see, if you grabbed the muffin it wouldn't be nearly as healthy (at least depending on the cereal) but it was a great time saver. You could eat muffins anywhere, Dustin did all the time. In the park…in the car…you can sneak them into movies, the possibilities are endless.

So you could grab a muffin and eat it on the go and save plenty of time. But cereal…you have to set time aside for cereal. Cereal cannot be rushed, and Dustin would know, he's tried. Cereal will always smack you down by trying to choke you or spilling all over you or something equally messy and unpleasant if you even think about rushing it just the teeniest bit, so you have to eat cereal at a table, slowly. So there's a minus. Another downside is that you have to clean the bowl and spoon when you're done, and you can't have it without milk. It's been said that people eat it with water but, come on, that's gross. Milk and milk _alone_ goes with cereal. So if you have no milk, you couldn't have any cereal and…well, you can guess where this goes. Still, cereal's good for you (at least the kind that his mom eats, his chocolate cereal…not so much), and you get dairy and vitamins and all kinds of things.

So how does this affect the big picture?

The muffin had basically no clean up and allowed you to instantly get on with your life, _bing-bang-boom,_ done. But cereal improved your health and will help you when you start getting old and gray and wrinkly and stuff. The muffin probably does the opposite. Unless it's bran, but who eats bran?

…but he digressed. The point is that two tiny, itty-bitty choices can completely change your life.

So Dustin can't help but wonder (because that's all he can really do at the moment) exactly what decisions he and Tori made to end up where they were. Sure, he could blame it all on being a Power Ranger, but that was far too unspecific. That was one general event, he wanted to know all of the _tiny_ events that had lead to them being slung around like yo-yo's by an evil giant plant from space.

That wasn't too much to ask, was it?

He knew the basics, he and Tori had gone to visit that Doctor about the seeds they had found and ended up getting knocked out and tied up by Marah and Kapri. Then, when they woke up Tori had gotten rid of their vine/ropes with her mad water skills. When they were sneaking out they found the real Doctor who told them about the sa-something plant growing in the basement and they sent him for help to get him out of the way so they could investigate it. They went into the basement, the plant got a little too friendly, they morphed into rangers, _it_ morphed into a much bigger, angrier version of itself and decided to seek revenge on all humans starting with them.

Their swords aren't sharp enough or strong enough or _something_ enough to cut through the vines that are wrapped around them so they were stuck waiting until Shane could come and help them out.

Had he left anything out?

He was just glad the plant hadn't decided to throw them into any brick walls in the mean time. In fact, it seemed perfectly happy just swinging them around. If he closed his eyes it almost felt like a carnival ride... instead of being molested by and big angry plant that wanted nothing more then for him to die.

It was an odd feeling.

Up and down.

Up and down.

Up and down and _wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, wiggle_.

Hey everybody it's the evil plant jive!

_What's the evil plant jive? _

Why, it's only the latest dance craze to sweep the nation!

_How do you do it? _

It's simple, really. First get an evil space ninja to attack your hometown.

_Does it have to be an evil space ninja?_

Well, evil space pirates will do, we're not picky. The important part is that they're from space. Next, wait until evil space person sends down an evil plant monster.

_How can you be sure there will be an evil plant monster? What if they're not into plants? What if they prefer fish or magnets or something like that? _

Don't worry; the evil plant thing will happen. Evil space people aren't all that original. Now, just wait until evil plant monster creates and evil plant of their own and go and attack it.

_Attack it? What if I don't know how to fight? _

Turns out it doesn't matter! Even if you do know how to fight you'll just get caught up in its vines and then you'll be doing the evil plant jive!

_Golly, that sounds like fun!_

It's not. It's probably the most opposite of fun you can get. If fun was white, the evil plant jive would be the blackest of black in a black hole in outer space.

…and today had started off so _good_.

Even _after_ they had been caught out late it had been good. Sensei wasn't mad and Cam appeared disapproving at most (which wasn't all that different from how Cam usually appeared so Dustin assumed they were cool). Still…he couldn't help but feel that they were gonna be in for it later.

It had been worth it though, everyone had been happy.

Actually, he couldn't tell if Cam was happy with his present. He wasn't even sure if Cam had seen it yet (but that wasn't very likely, he spent all his time in the lab), but he hadn't said anything. How could he not like Leonard? _Dustin_ liked Leonard and he had gotten wet because of him.

He would give cam a few more days before he asked him about it.

…._eh_…he felt like he was going to throw up.

Since when did that happen? He had made himself have an iron stomach. When he was little he rarely ever got to go to amusement parks so when he did he made the most of it, letting no food get left behind and no ride un-ridden. Those two things had made him get over any motion sickness he had very quickly. And it's not like you could compete in motocross if you couldn't handle some high speeds or sudden changes in direction. It probably had something to do with staying out late. That had been when it had all started. The dizziness, the stomach aches. It was all just lack of sleep.

He'd take a nap later and he would be back at 100% in no time.

…If Shane would ever just _show up_ they could finish this up before dinner time. Now…mom was working late so he had the house all to himself.

He hated when that happened.

The solution then was movie night. He'd invite Shane over and they could catch up on the latest batch of terrible foreign action films (he was pretty sure most of them had gone direct to video). They usually ended up making up their own plot for the movie, adding in other comments to see who could make the other laugh most. They were tied…probably, they didn't keep score.

Oh, and he could totally order meat lover's pizza too.

That's it, after this today was going to be nothing but awesome.

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Whoever said…what was it? Oh, yeah, whoever said "Misery loves company", yeah, Dustin didn't like him. Or her. Well… he didn't like _them. _At all. Not even a little bit. In fact if he ever met him/her he was totally going to punch him/her in his/her face. And then when they fell to the ground holding their bloody nose crying, he would kick them. Repeatedly. And while they were all like _"Ow, no, stop hurting me you handsome ninja man you_ (because he would totally do it as a ninja, even if they weren't supposed to run around hitting innocent people, even if the person _wasn't_ so innocent). _I was only trying to share knowledge with the world. Owww-"_. He would laugh at them. And then he would go out of his way to make friends with other people who were nearby so they could laugh at them to.

Because Misery doesn't love company.

Misery loved being completely alone, under really soft blankets with pillows (lots and lots of pillows) on top…and also under…well, basically all around the area of Misery's head. Misery enjoyed chilling out all through the misery and not listening to things that make Misery's really bad headache hurt even more than it already did. Things like…music…and tv…and anything that may consider making any sound. Specifically, people pounding on Misery's door.

Misery…Dustin, just wanted to snuggle deeper into his bed and hope…or pray…that this nightmare of a cold would just go away….forever…and never come back.

But _somebody_, he was going to blame the "Misery loves Company" _person_ (awful human being that causes other people to pound on doors of sick, innocent bystanders), decided that they had to come and…_what_?

If it was Cam with super medicine that would magically make him better he would take back everything he said…thought…whatever. He would spend the rest of his life hunting down that quote person just so he could give them some cookies, and not like the nasty oatmeal kind, but like the best kind (chocolate chip). And then he would give some to Cam.

He would even make them himself.

The thumping on his door finally stopped and a voice rang through. "Dude, can we come in?"

It wasn't Cam, it was Shane. Well, maybe Cam was part of the "we", or whoever the "we" still had meds. Maybe this was still good news. Maybe he wouldn't have to punch Shane in the face after all.

He made a grunt-ish sounding thing to prove he was listening, or at least awake. Anything to make sure Shane would stop hitting his door.

Was he using a sledgehammer? It was ridiculous.

Dustin peeked out from in between his pillowy nest to watch his hideout be invaded by Shane and…Tori (that wasn't too surprising) bearing a tray of soup and…no, no medicine. He would have to tough this one out.

He would also have to punch his best friend in the face.

_Ugh…_he didn't _want _to tough this out, he wanted to sleep this out and dream happy dreams of flying and giant waffles and whatever else his subconscious felt like dreaming about. Unfortunately for some odd reason not-sleeping seemed to be a side effect of that pollen Flora whatsherface (the latest and greatest of Lothor's mob) had used on them. Cam had said that was what made him sick.

So _now_ he had to remain painfully aware of how much it sucked to be sick. And this didn't even happen until _after_ they had beaten her.

Bubkis, that's all this was.

Cam had said that his "cold" would go away soon. It had started affecting him a little yesterday and had full on attacked during the night. When he finally managed to get word to the Cam (because he was pretty sure he was dying) he had come over and ran some tests.

No, he hadn't been dying. It only felt like it.

It had driven Cam nuts when he couldn't figure out why the morpher's healing abilities weren't helping him. He then locked himself away to do more research and science like things, so they probably wouldn't see him for a few days. Hence his absence now…that or he was still giving them all the cold shoulder.

Fight it all you want Cam, but on the inside you're gooey. Gooey.

_Hey everyone, its Cam the goo monster. Watch out, he might melt on you!_

Dustin himself wasn't too terribly curious about his sickness, he was more…angry. Really, really angry.

His nose wasn't helping his mood. It was temperamental. It ran all day and in the few moments where he was about to fall asleep it would get all stuffy and he would wake back up. It was just his luck. No one else got sick, just the yellow guy. It's because pollen's yellow. It was all, _"You're yellow, I'm yellow, let's be really good friends!"_ except _"really good friends"_ in evil-space-pollen world meant 'let's make you really miserable'. Which brought him back to wanting to be swallowed into a world of silent, dark, softness all _alone _until this whole thing just kinda blew over.

His team disagreed.

"Come on man, you have to eat something." Shane whispered, setting the tray on Dustin's tissue covered nightstand.

At least he was being quiet, so point for him.

"It's chicken noodle."

_Eh_…like that made it better.

Dustin attempted to bat Shane away with his right hand and managed a slight flop.

Stupid space pollen.

"No…no food…lemme alone." He mumbled, pushing his head back down underneath his pillow sanctuary.

His stomach didn't want anything, he promised. Really. If he ate anything it would only come back up, this he knew from experience.

He was starting to hate his toilet.

"It'll make you feel better Dustin," Tori coaxed from outside the barrier.

You know what would make him feel better? Getting warm. So unless they were planning using the soup to create a giant fire he had no use for it.

He tried to explain this, but all he could get out was a soft, "No…"

"You need to get something in your stomach." Shane insisted, ignoring his protest.

Stupid leader.

Dustin wasn't sure why he was lecturing, personally _he _was all for the eating thing, it was his stomach that was the issue. Maybe Shane should try talking to it.

The thought of his best friend arguing with his stomach sent him into a weak fit of giggles.

Shouldn't Shane be doing something else? Like training? Or leading? He could practice on Tori right now and lead her out the door. It would be great. He could be like, _"Let's leave Dustin alone."_ And Tori would be like, "_Great, I'll follow you."_ And then everyone would win.

If only he had enough energy to tell them his plan.

Well, if speaking wasn't working for him he was going to have to resort to other methods. Now was as good a time as any other to discover if he had psychic powers.

Peeking back from underneath his pillows he stared at…Shane, he was closer. He focused his eyes as much as he could and attempted to share his plan.

_Soup is bad. Take it and go. Leave with Tori. _

He was ignored… or unnoticed. Either way it was a little rude. Didn't they come here for him? Shouldn't they at least have the decency to know he was trying to talk to them?

But _no-_ Shane was just going to continue shoving his wadded up tissues into his trashcan and making small talk.

What a jerkface.

Another pang in Dustin's head made him retreat back under his comfy pillow goodness; psychic powers and being sick did not mix well together.

He would have to try again when he was better.

He groaned again in protest, this time not even bothering with words. Hey, they hadn't helped him so far.

"You would think we were trying to hurt you." Tori teased, and then he felt the top part of his pillow fortress being breached, his pillows being pulled away one by one. He missed Shane's clever response in his anger.

Not. Cool. It had taken Dustin a really long to get all the pillows just where he wanted them, and now Tori (he assumed Shane was still fascinated with his trashcan) was destroying all his hard work in a matter of seconds. Was he going to stand for this? Was he, Dustin the awesomeness (as he sometimes referred to himself in his mind), going to stand for the deconstruction of his masterpiece?

All that time, all that effort, wasted?

As the last pillow got pulled off from on top of his head he decided that yes, yes he was. It was too tiring to do anything otherwise.

_Goodbye pillow fort, you will be missed._

A flood of cold air hit his back and wracked his body with shivers.

_This _was the reason he hadn't bothered with food or bathrooms or moving in general. Underneath his blankets was a utopia of warmth and happiness. Outside was a place that was so cold that nothing seemed worth getting out of bed. Feebly, he felt around for his blankets, only to have them pulled away. He moaned and buried his face deeper into his bed.

They were mean.

"We're helping you."

_Well, you have a funny way of showing it._

He missed his pillows.

"Can you turn over?" Shane asked, rubbing his shoulder. Moving his head had been hard enough, how was he supposed to move his whole body when it felt like lead?

He waved his hand "no". Shane would get the message.

His friend gently grabbed his shoulders and turned him onto his back, making his head (and the world) roll. He whimpered and closed his eyes to try and make it all stop spinning.

_Oh headache, if only you could be fought like one of Lothor's monsters you would be so dead by now. _

Dustin groaned and half-heartedly glared at his two caretakers' who unsympathetically smirked back at him before they continued their work (Tori with his blankets and Shane with his torture). Shane snaked his right arm under Dustin's waist and, while keeping his left hand on his shoulder, carefully began to pull him into the sitting position.

Dustin didn't attempt to help. Not that he could have, really, but if he had been able to, he wouldn't simply on principal. This was his only way of expressing his unhappiness at his…unhappiness being interrupted.

Tori reset some of his pillows behind him so that he was comfortable and Shane grabbed the tray off the nightstand and placed it in front of him.

Smells that usually left him happy did nothing for him today except make him feel sicker.

Here was the deal, he loved soup. Soup was the bomb. It was easy to make, easy to eat, easy to find in a grocery store, and he practically lived off the stuff. And the _variety_…don't even get him started. If he had to eat soup everyday for the rest of his life he would die a happy person, _that's_ how much he loved soup. And now he wanted nothing more then to throw it out the window.

The worst part about this, the absolute worst, awful-blah thing about this (aside from the soup thing)? It was Saturday.

He was sick on Saturday.

He wasn't even missing school to be miserable; this was his downtime, his track time, his work time. _And_, he had a test on Monday.

Worst. Weekend. Ever.

Shane decided to take action (hadn't he done enough?) and grabbed the spoon (he could feed himself thanks, he just didn't want to) and dipped it into the soup as Tori moved about the rest of the room, doing more _cleaning_. Dustin would never be able to find anything when these two were done. She started to talk about how her day had been, the beach, how Kelly sent her best.

_Way to rub it in friend._

A squeeze on his shoulder brought him back to Shane who was holding the spoon up to his mouth. Dustin grimaced and turned his head away from the offered terribleness, laying his head on his pillow in another sorry attempt at sleeping. Maybe if he faked it Shane would go away. He tried a fake snore for added effect and got a weird cough-sneeze hybrid that made his brain throb. Well…_that_ hadn't been worth it. He moaned and pushed his head harder into his pillow, willing it all away.

He heard Shane sigh (softly, thank goodness) and put the spoon down. Small victory. Finally, he could be left alone to suffer.

Shane shifted and instead of grabbing the tray and leaving he wrapped his right arm back around Dustin's waist and pulled him into his side, shifting his head from the pillow onto Shane's chest. Dustin opened his eyes briefly to glare at his tormentor once more. He loved having his friends around but the few times when he made it clear he wanted to be left alone, they usually left him alone. Why couldn't they do it now?

Wait…maybe this wasn't Shane. Maybe Marah and Kapri had made evil copies of Shane and Tori (like they had that other time) and sent them to torture Dustin by moving his pillows and forcing soup and Gatorade down his throat. He wondered what was next in their evil agenda.

If they stole his tissues, it was on.

"Evil," He croaked.

He was on to them and their dastardly plans. He needed to contact real Shane and Tori…and Cam…and the army. This was serious business.

He searched quickly for a weapon and came up with the spoon lying innocently by the soup bowl. Well, beggars can't be choosers. Maybe he could poke not-Shane in the eye, then they would both be so distracted by his injury Dustin could use his morpher to get the others and save the day.

His cunning plan was ruined when Not-Shane took the spoon back from him, smiling at him in amusement.

_Nertz._

Marah and Kapri had done a really good job with these guys.

"Think of it as tough love." Not-Tori replied from her spot on the floor.

Was she sorting his laundry? It was already sorted. Sure, his piles may not appear to have any kind of organization but _he _could find what he needed and that's all that mattered.

She was so _evil_.

The spoon was back and this time Not-Shane didn't wait for him to cooperate before he pressed it into his bottom lip.

If going on the offensive didn't work, maybe it was time to get defensive. He looked up at Not-Shane and gave him his most pathetic-puppy-just-got-kicked look. He would be so sad, so miserable looking that Not-Shane would see the error of his ways. Because of this he would have no choice but to defect from team evil. Then, when he realized he had no place in the world because he couldn't finish what he was created to do he would fall into a fit of despair and attack Not-Tori with the chicken noodle soup and destroy her, and by doing so would destroy himself.

Dustin was almost sad about the loss of the soup but hey, it was a war and casualties were expected.

With them safely out of the way Dustin would go back to trying to take a nap. Then he would call his real friends.

Guy had to have priorities.

"Not gonna work this time, you need to eat." Evil-Shane coaxed, stubbornly refusing to move the spoon.

_And_…he shouldn't feel disappointed, he really shouldn't. If his head was refusing to work with him, why would evil copies of his friends?

He sighed and opened his mouth, steeling himself for the worst. It didn't taste poisoned, so there was a plus. And Not-Shane was warm. Sure, it was the warmth of _evil_, and he was still making Dustin eat soup, but it could be worse. He could be un-comfy.

Not-Shane smiled and refilled the spoon to start the whole awful process all over again.

Dustin decided he would make the best of his suffering and snuggled deeper into Not-Shane's side, eating the soup whenever the other made him. He hadn't realized how hungry he had been until now, but everything had sounded so unappealing and so far away that he hadn't wanted to eat.

Did this mean that they were actually trying to help him?

Maybe they weren't evil copies. He decided it would be easiest just to ask.

"Hey," he mumbled in between bites, "are you…clones?" He couldn't see Shane's face from his position so he looked over at Not/maybe-Tori. Her initial expression of shock gave way to a smile. She made a "wait" gesture with her hand to Not/maybe-Shane and put down the shirt she had been holding. Gracefully, she got up and walked across the room into his bathroom.

So…she couldn't answer the question before using the bathroom? Sure, when you gotta go, you gotta go but…shouldn't she close the door?

He heard the faucet run for a bit and Tori returned with a cup of water.

Oh, she needed to clear her throat. That made sense…

She closed her eyes and the water moved up and out of the cup like it had a life of its own.

Definitely Tori, this was water ninja all the way.

_That's a relief_, Dustin thought, finally relaxing into real-Shane's side. He was sorry to have doubted them, but it was perfectly reasonable fear, and he had been a little distracted. He would worry about it later but for now, it was time to enjoy the show. It was pretty to watch the water as it rose and fell back into the cup, like a water fountain that you didn't have to push the button on. She had done this exact same thing earlier to destroy the vines that Marah and Kapri had tied them up with. This time he had the pleasure of not getting burned. Much better.

She ended her demonstration quickly though, and as the water settled back down she dipped her fingers into the cup and flicked some water in his face.

A punishment for not believing.

And yes, it was a punishment. It was cold, and awful. He buried his face in Shane's chest to try and dry off. The guy had a hoodie on, he probably wouldn't mind. Probably.

Shane pulled his face away and dabbed it dry with tissues to get the pesky water that had stubbornly remained. Task complete, he balled them up and threw them at Dustin's attacker. Hooray defense!

This whole knight in shining armor thing was happening way too often.

But enough protecting, it was food time. Dustin poked Shane as hard as he could (which isn't saying much) so they could get back to the matter at hand. Now that he knew he was in safe hands he was starving. They continued from where they left off in comfortable silence, the soup tasting much better this time.

"You know that you're going to have to get wet sometime?" Shane said as they neared the bottom of the bowl. Dustin paused mid-sip of Gatorade to stare up at his friend, waiting for him to clarify. Because that statement alone was crazy talk.

How she managed to stay so…perky was beyond Dustin. He couldn't even do that on a good day. Most times he could, but not always.

It had to be a lady thing.

"And you know, hygiene is important." Shane added, squeezing his side.

Dustin snorted into his drink. He was not leaving his bed and that was final. It was too cold. Hygiene wasn't worth it. Besides, it wasn't that important.

Shane doesn't miss his reaction and casually asked, "Dude, when was the last time you took a shower?"

This was supposed to be a joke to win the argument, but it hit a tender spot and Dustin tried to hide his flinch by glaring down at his cup, centering his focus on melting his ice cubes.

Stupid ice cubes.

"M'not dirty." He mumbled to no one in particular, willing his sour mood away. He showered, he showered all the time. He didn't know what they were talking about.

He wasn't pouting. Ninja's don't pout.

"It was probably after our run at Ninja ops."

Yes Tori, it was, seeing as that was the last time he had been feeling okay enough to move. Great de…decon…? Deductive, that was it. Great deductive reasoning.

"Dustin," She continued, "this'll help you."

The yellow ranger glowered and flicked his straw half-heartedly, watching bounce off the sides of his cup.

Shane sighed and reached up to rub the side of his head. Dustin relaxed into it, despite his mood.

"Hey man, you didn't want the soup either," Shane reminded him softly and he sighed.

If they had been right about the soup, maybe they would be right about this. Still, he couldn't stop dreading it. If he was cold now, it would be worse when he got down to his skivvies.

…With Shane.

Hopefully it was only Shane. Shane who would have to do all the work and take off his clothes and ah…this was going to be awful. Who had thought that the first person who would want to take off his pants would be his best friend?

He would need to get an opinion. If this was going down, he deserved that much at least.

The first time was _supposed_ to be special.

"Okay," Dustin conceded, snuggling (yes snuggling, for there was no pride when you were sick) into Shane to enjoy his last few moments of warmth. Tori smiled brightly at him and he could tell by Shane's enthusiastic arm pats that he's smiling too.

Well, at least somebody's happy.

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"Can you get the…?"

"I got it." Tori interrupted, already grabbing the tray. Shane waved her away and went back to rubbing Dustin's head. He was pretty out of it. "I'll take care of this, you take care of him." She said, retreating from the room.

As much as he hated doing dishes Shane couldn't help but feel he had gotten the short end of the stick. He deserved it though. He shouldn't have been so surprised when Cam had called them earlier to say that Dustin was _"Having an adverse reaction to Flora Bendicus's pollen assault"._ He should've noticed the signs; he had spent all last night with him.

What kind of leader was he?

This was getting him nowhere. All they could do now was help Dustin as much as they could and wait it out. The least Shane could do was be there for him.

The red ranger wished he had been the one that had gotten sick.

He decided to focus on the matter at hand, pushing away his guilt. It wasn't helping. He carefully separated the blankets from his friend (who had somehow, in a way that was purely Dustin, managed to tangle himself in them completely).

"Hey man, you still with me?"

"Yeah…" the other whispered, curling in on himself. "s'cold."

"I know, but we'll fix that." Dustin glared at him (something he seemed rather fond of doing today). Shane tried not to let it get to him. Dustin was just out of it, that was all it was. The guy had thought they were clones. It was probably just a side affect of the pollen, nothing more.

He grabbed Dustin bridal style and picked him up, taking a moment to settle him before entering the bathroom. Exercising extreme caution he lowered his friend to the ground and set him with his back against the sink cabinets. Now came the part he hadn't thought through.

He and Tori had discussed this on the way over, that it had to happen and that he was going to do it, but she had left him to the details.

Typical. He could imagine her laughing at him while she did the dishes.

_Girls_.

Bath or shower? He had read conflicting opinions online. Most people said that they both were good, others said to avoid baths, others said to avoid showers. So…it was ultimately up to him.

Which one would be easier?

Dustin's bathroom had a bath/shower combo decked out with a rather bold shower curtain covered in yellow smiley faces. A gift from Tori. It fit Dustin well. She hadn't even known how well at the time.

Either choice he had to get Dustin out of the tub. Shower would make it easier for washing. So, shower then bath? Shower and no bath? How about shower and then see how it goes. That would be best. With his course determined he set about putting it into action. He quickly got up and turned the lights on, earning a hiss from his friend.

_Sorry Dustin, couldn't be helped._

Next he closed the door to the bathroom but left it unlocked, just in case. Aside from him and Dustin the only other person in the house was Tori, and she would knock before she even thought about entering. As he walked over to the shower he glanced over at Dustin who was trying his best to go back to sleep against the cabinets. Another plus to the shower, he wouldn't drown if he fell asleep.

Shane reached into the shower and twisted the knobs to a reasonable amount of heat. All sources online had said the shower/bath had to be hot. With the time it took to heat up, he would get Dustin ready. He turned back to Dustin to begin the awkward part of this shindig. He opted to start with his socks. That would be the easiest. He peeled them off, (two socks for each foot) and threw them in the hamper that was nearby. Next was the sweater, which would probably have a shirt or two underneath it if the socks had been any indication.

This was weird…the least amount of clothing he had ever seen Dustin in was his bathing suit when he and Dustin joined Tori at the beach.

What were the odds he'd have his trunks on now?

Not very high.

The sweater took longer (Dustin being no help at all) but Shane eventually managed to wrangle it off him to reveal only one shirt. That was good news.

"Not…shirt." Dustin murmured, pushing his chin to his chest, face flushed.

Shane sat back for a moment. If he felt awkward about this, then Dustin probably felt that times a thousand. His guilt came back full force. Where was his head?

"You need to get clean." He insisted quietly, grabbing the shirt hem.

_Has to be done. Has to be done. Has to be done._

"Cold." Dustin moaned as he pulled the shirt off. He folded his arms over his chest. Shane rubbed his hands over the goosebumps. His skin was on fire.

_This will help. This will help. This will help._

"Water's not," he reasoned, keeping his focus on the last article of clothing.

How was he going to do this one?

"Water's wet," Dustin whined, leaning into his touch. Shane pulled him away from the cabinet and lifted him up into his side, just enough to pull his sweats down.

"That I can't argue with." He grunted as he continued his work. Two pairs of sweatpants, twice the effort.

How had Dustin managed to put so much on?

He rested the mechanic back against the cabinet to finish working the pants off, watching as the shivers increased.

He would leave the underwear; this was bad enough as it was.

Shane checked the shower temp to see if it was reasonable (it was) before the third part of his plan came into affect. It would require getting a little wet. He pulled off his hoodie (seeing as he was becoming so good at the whole clothes removing thing) and went to pick up Dustin a second time. It was a good thing his friend wasn't too heavy, otherwise his back would be feeling this tomorrow. Then they would have two rangers down.

...though Tori could probably take Lothor.

Pushing the curtain aside with his right hand he lowered Dustin into the tub, soaking the side of his face. Dustin jerked back a little at first, fighting him on the way down, but eventually relaxed under the hot spray, resting against the back of the tub.

_Objective complete! The lion is in the cave! _

See, that wasn't too terrible.

At least, that's what Shane thought until he reached over and grabbed the shampoo and Dustin mumbled "I'm good looking...right?"

He froze mid action, water soaking his shirt. He wasn't sure how he was supposed to take that. Where had _that_ come from?

Dustin's train of thought was a unique thing of its own and hard enough to follow on regular days. How was he supposed to do it now when he had skipped from point A to point M without bothering to tell Shane?

…he was sick, with a fever. This kind of thing was to be expected.

_Just go along with it._

"Yeah, you're good looking," he responded, working the shampoo through Dustin's hair.

"Awe…some," the other whispered, humming with approval. They fell into silence.

For both their sakes, this would never be spoken of again.

* * *

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* * *

Endnotes:

You know what the funny thing is? I got sick while writing this chapter.

So… in my face.

Merry Christmas everyone.

Until next time.


	4. A Little Fall of Rain

Chapter 4

A Little Fall of Rain

Continues off of last chapter.

I don't own Les Miserables the book, nor the musical

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"Okay, here's an easy one."

_Oh Tori, you should know better._

"You said that about the last one."

_That seemingly harmless comment is going to completely derail this conversation._

"The last one _was_ an easy one."

_And you're going to let it happen._

"Dude, it so totally wasn't."

_That depends on who you are._

Shane repositioned himself, turning on his side and pulling his left arm up to rest his head on it. He wanted a better view of this.

"I'm not a dude, and it _was_ an easy one. There's only one date that you have to remember," Tori lectured, pointing a flash card at Dustin for added effect.

_This here, yeah, this argument, this is going to do nothing._

"But like, when was that even mentioned?" Dustin asked, honestly confused.

_Dustin, I don't think I could hate you if I tried._

"It's at the front of the book. Every time you open the book, you see it."

_Where'd that perky attitude go Tori? Huh? Not so smug now, huh? _

"Only if you look for it! If they really wanted you to know the date it was published they would just put it at the top of each page."

As Tori narrowed her eyes Shane took a moment to appreciate seeing her visibly count to ten.

_In yo face Tori._

"That's where the title of the book goes."

_In. Yo. Face._

"Well I know the title of the book; we only talk about it _always._ I'm not that forgetful."

_I don't think that's her point._

"You know what…"

"Okay," Shane interrupted, because as amusing as this was, enough was enough. "So the last one might," he got a surprised look from Dustin that could be the beginnings of betrayal and a look of satisfaction from Tori, "or might not have," Dustin grinned and stuck out his tongue at his tormentor, Tori glared, "been easy. Can we just get the next question?"

So today it was his turn to be the mediator.

How fun.

"Fine," Tori sighed and picked up a new flashcard from the pile in front of her, "who is the author of the book?"

"Hey, that _is_ easy! Victor Hugo."

Shane tried not to feel too terribly satisfied when he saw Tori's eye visibly twitch.

_She had it coming_

"Fabulous," She ground out.

If Dustin had noticed her displeasure, he completely ignored it, he was too happy with his victory.

Shane couldn't think of a better way to spend his Sunday.

He had spent the night over at Dustin's to make sure his friend would be okay, and after the shower it had been. He had been worried that Dustin wouldn't be able to sleep, judging by the bags under his eyes when they got there he had been having trouble with that, but as soon as the yellow ranger's head had touched the pillow he was out. He slept through the entire night, like a log.

At least he didn't snore.

Today Dustin was up to about 70%. He was still sick, but not nearly as much as yesterday. Yesterday had been in a league of its own. He was well enough to throw pillows (why he had so many, Shane would never know) at Shane's head to wake him up in the morning. Guess what he had wanted? Soup. Soup for breakfast.

At least Shane didn't have to force him to eat this time.

Now all three of them were studying for the one class they happened to share, English. Tomorrow they had a test over Les Miserables, a book that had been their assigned reading, and because Dustin hadn't had the time to gather his notes they had decided to review for the test together. Tori, being the most prepared, was the one asking the questions.

_Wonder how much she regretted that now?_

Well, she would get no pity from this person.

Tori sighed and put the card in the pile of things they actually knew. It was significantly smaller than the question card pile.

It would be a long night.

But Shane was ready for it. He and Dustin currently occupied the bed (an amazing feat considering how many pillows Dustin deemed necessary to survive) while they studied. Some guys were babe magnets, but Dustin was a pillow magnet.

It figured.

Shane rested on his side with his back against the wall, giving him a clear view of everything that was going on. It allowed him to referee his two friends, and by referee, he meant use his body as a human shield for Dustin when Tori finally snaped. At the rate they were going, it might actually come to that. Dustin was lying on the outside of the bed resting on his back, blankets pulled up to his chin. Even after all the medicine and the soup and the shower he was still cold, that was the only thing that hadn't gone away. This was the only reason Shane didn't feel odd wrapping his right arm around his friend. He had heard that body warmth could help, and after everything else, it didn't hurt to try.

He ignored the _look_ that Tori gave him when he did it.

_Girls_.

He was just trying to help.

"Okay," Tori began, picking up a new flashcard, "who are the characters Fantine leaves Cosette with?"

"Oh, I know this one," Dustin exclaimed, moving his hand underneath the blanket.

_Probably snapping his fingers._

"It's the Thimble…the thimble-adiers," He answers and looks back and forth between them, unsure. "It's something like that, right?"

"It's the Thénardier's," Shane supplied.

"Right," Dustin nodded, as though that was what he had actually said, "I was close."

As his dad always said, _Close only counts in horse shoes and hand grenades._

"Not really," Tori replied absently, putting the card down.

_Here we go again_.

"I got the The- and the adier part," Dustin reasons, starting to sit up to better argue with Tori. Before he could get too far Shane gently pushed him back down, and Dustin complied without looking at him. He was to busy looking at Tori, and thankfully she was too busy continuing yet another useless argument to send Shane a girl look.

_This has been going on all night. _

It was a wonder that they functioned as a team at all.

"Mrs. Johnson doesn't want _part_ of the characters names, she wants all of it."

_Come on, Tori._

"I'll be able to recognize it in multiple choice."

_Unless she puts other names that are similar…uh, she's infecting me._

"What if it's a short answer question?"

_Seriously?_

"Chill, it would probably be somewhere else in the test."

_Aren't you supposed to be the reliable one? Right now I'm relying on you to get us out of here before midnight._

"If she makes the test, why would she just give you one of the answers?"

_It does happen sometimes._

Way to be impartial.

"Because she's a totally nice lady, and she knows we don't all speak German."

_Ouch._

"It's French!"

If he didn't know better, he would think that Dustin was _trying_ to make Tori mad.

"Still foreign."

It was time to stop this before somebody gets mauled.

"Next question," Shane cut in; causing Tori to snap her mouth shut and throw him a dirty look. Dustin, thinking he had won the argument bounced up and down (as much as he could) in victory and poked his hand out from under his blanket for a high five.

Shane happily obliged him.

Tori rolled her eyes and picked up another card.

_Welcome back Dustin, we missed you._

"Define a flat character."

Dustin opened his mouth to answer but Tori clarified, "And don't tell me 'a character that's flat', that's not what I'm looking for."

He had tried that when she had asked for the definition of a static character.

While true, it probably wouldn't be a good answer.

_If only it was._

Shane watched as Dustin's face turned to one of great thought. This one, he probably knew. At least part of it.

Shane had heard through the grapevine that Mrs. Johnson's tests weren't the most difficult thing you would see, but they were tricky. There was a multiple choice section with general information about the book, a short answer section (with questions like the Thénardier one), a short essay section, and of course, a literary device section.

In Shane's opinion the literary devices section was going to be the easiest. All you had to do was memorize a list of definitions. On the test there would be ten examples, and for each number you wrote what it was an example of, and the definition for it. For Shane, it was easy points. For Dustin…not so much. Multiple choice was his strongest suit but when it came to memorizing stuff…well, it just took some time. Shane had spent most of the afternoon making him write the definitions of the words over and over again, despite his protests that he was too sick.

If he was well enough to throw pillows, he was well enough to write.

_So there._

"It's a…" Dustin started, absently playing with the edge of his blanket, "It's a character type that…" his hand moved to his hair.

_Alright, you got part one, now just give her the rest of it._

"An easily recognized character type," Tori interrupted, and now it was Shane's turn to glare at her.

_Let him get it._

Too bad he didn't have psychic powers.

Thankfully Dustin ignored her, "that…may or may not be fully…de…deliberated."

_So close_

"Delineated," Tori corrected, card going back into the big pile.

"Right, same thing," Dustin waved off, choosing to take this as another win.

_Please Tori please Tori please Tori please-_

But she was set on being right. _Always with the being right_, "No, it's not even remotely the same-"

"Just remember it's delineated, okay," Shane cut her off, focusing his attention on Dustin.

"Okay," Dustin responded, looking slightly abashed.

"There's no 'b'," Shane tried again with a gentler tone.

Dustin brightened back up and began to wave his hand energetically, "But it sounds _so_ cool."

_It's still a completely different word._

Tori watched their banter with a look of disbelief on her face, "Hello, I'm still-"

"Just give Mrs. Johnson what she wants," Shane said over her, as though the only two people in the universe were Dustin and himself.

"She needs to live a little," Dustin grumbled, tucking himself back under his _"utopia of warmness"._

Shane had gotten a kick out of that one.

"No, she needs you to give her-" Tori tried to break in, but she continued to be disregarded.

"While true, just-" and this time, it was Shane who was interrupted.

"Okay, okay," Dustin gave in, closing his eyes, "it's delineated. Sheesh."

_See Tori, you catch more flies with honey then vinegar._

"Stop ignoring-"

"What's the next one Tori?" Shane asked, smiling brightly.

The sour look he got in return was enough to tell him he's going to be in for it later.

_Well…later is later_

And now was pretty awesome.

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Oh air. Oh beautiful, wonderful, fresh, lovely, cold…splendid air, how you have been missed.

_Oh so missed. _

The gusts blowing through the hair, hitting the face, attacking jackets and clothes and papers. Air, you will never _ever_ be taken for granted again. Never. Now if _only_ Dustin could convince Shane and Cam…and Tori and Sensei and just about everyone in the world (or so it seemed) that he was okay for riding he would be all good.

He was really starting to miss his mud.

He had tried to say that it would be good for his health (because they totally have mud baths at all the spas (not that he's ever been but he's seen them in movies) and girls go to those all the time) but they wouldn't budge. Then, he tried pointing out how good it would be for him to reconnect with his element and Tori had said she would bring him some potted plants. When he had said exercise was good for recovering bodies Cam had said he could jog around Ninja Ops as much as he wanted. He would even join him. Dustin almost took him up on it because he had been so excited that Cam wanted to spend time with any of them willingly. Then Cam said he would be there to catch him when he passed out.

So…maybe not for hanging out purposes. Still, he cared.

Finally Dustin begged Shane to let him work on his bike but Shane (with his all-knowing self) knew that as soon as he got anywhere near his bike he would want to take it out for a spin. So that was a no-go.

No bike, no track, no mud.

He was still a recovering boy after all.

Eventually Shane admitted that after being cooped up in his room all weekend he could use some fresh air and brought him to the skate park to film some more footage for his demo tape, this time with Cam's blessing. So here he was, sitting (at Shane's insistence) on a bench filming away. It wasn't the track, but it was still a humongous improvement to his room. And there was plenty of air.

Beautiful, wonderful, glorious air.

And he had earned it. The test, that monster of a thing, was finally over and he wanted nothing more then to forget about it. He had probably gotten a C.

He really had _tried_. But all that stuff always got jumbled up in his head and he would mix up his answers. Even after the major study session he had with Shane and Tori he still got confused by half the questions.

…he felt like he was letting down his team. Like, if he had tried _just_ a bit harder then maybe…

Maybe it wasn't entirely his fault. He had been a little distracted with…stuff.

Tori, being the wonderful person that she is had brought him something to help him learn the story better. It turned out this gigantic book had been made into a musical and her older sister's college had performed it. Because her sister was one of actors, Tori's family had a tape of the show. The blue ranger thought that if he actually _saw_ what happened he would understand everything better. Plus, music and singing tended to make most everything better, so if anything was going to help, it would probably be this. He had stayed up and watched the show after Tori and Shane had left.

Normally he reserved movie-watching time for whenever he was with Shane, but the guy had stayed over all weekend already and…

And…Dustin felt a little…dumb to have to resort to this. Like the only way he could learn things was if they had music and flashing lights and costumes. Like those tv shows they make for kids. It made him feel kinda like a five year old. And who wants to hang out with a five year old? They're boring. You _have_ to tolerate them when you're babysitting them but…

He wondered if that's how everyone felt. Like they had to babysit him.

…So he let them go home, and watched the musical all alone.

Tori had said that it was one of the greatest musicals of all time. This was something Dustin was a little skeptical about because the book was boring with a capital B. It had taken him _forever_ to read all the way through it and by the time he had gotten to the end he had forgotten most of it. Thankfully, that's what the internet is for.

So the brief low-down is this. This guy, Jean Valjean, stole a loaf of bread so that he can feed his family. _A legitimate worry._ Then he got locked away in prison (kinda) because people in France back then are really protective over their bread. In Dustin's opinion, the punishment is way harsh. Okay, so the guy's locked away and tried to escape but he's like the worst escapist in the world so he ends up getting caught and they make him stay locked away for 20 years because they're so mad or something along those lines. So (because he's terrible at escaping) he does his time and is set free to do as he pleased, and he decided to be awesome for the rest of his life and help people.

Then there's this chick named Fantine who has a baby with a rich guy but the rich guy's all like _"No, I'm not gonna marry you because I'm a jerk"_ and he left her with nothing. She then left her kid with another family (which turned out to be a really bad idea because they're evil) who she sent money to because no one wanted to hire a lady who has a kid with no husband.

The only real message Dustin's getting from this book is that people are mean. He's sure there's supposed to be other morals but he can't find them.

Anyway, eventually the people she worked with (it turned out that it's at a factory that Jean (but not called Jean cuz he started over) ran) found out she had a kid and she gets fired. Some stuff happens; and she somehow wound up in a hospital with Jean and she told him about her kid (whose name is Cosette) and dies.

Somewhere in all this Jean (but not-Jean) had to go on the run again.

Even though he had already served his time.

He got sad and decided to get the kid and raise her (because that's how awesome he is) and then the book skiped to like, 10 years in the future or something.

Also, there's this guy named Javert who dedicated his life to hunting Jean down because he must have nothing better to do. He should try making bread, since they seem to have such a shortage of _that._

Then there's this other dude that falls in love with Cosette named Marius. Then _she_ falls in love with _him_ and they get all lovey-dovey and gooey. For the life of him Dustin can't find any reason _why_ they fell in love except that they both think that the other's hot. Which, he can admit, is a little important when it comes to a relationship, but shouldn't they like…see if they liked each others personality or something? Is that all there is to it? You run around all your life until you find the one person that _looked_ hot enough to be the one and then you're done?

He always thought there was more to it then that.

Okay, so they fall in love for no good reason and then there's this war. Jean sent Cossette away for her protection and stayed and fights with Darius.

…so maybe this isn't the briefest of summaries.

But none of that is what's bothering Dustin. What's bothering him is this one scene (this is the musical, which is a much _shorter (and _therefore better) version of the book) where they're at this barricade and this _other_ girl (Eponine) who's in love with Darius took a bullet for him and said she loved him, and then he told her he wished she wasn't dying and they sang a sad song about rain and the audience cried and then she died.

What's up with that?

In the musical Darius and Cosette spend like, 10 minutes singing about how much they loved each other, and then this other girl (who looked like she really loved him, and not just for his looks) gets shot and _then _he decided to care about her?

It got Dustin thinking.

Was Darius humoring her because she was dying?

Like, to make her last few moments' happy ones but…it took her taking a bullet for him to care? To say he would love her? That's how much he couldn't be bothered?

And…maybe it wasn't just the play….musical, whatever. Maybe people did this all the time. Like, people lying to other people to make them feel better which sounded reasonable but…

He always came back to how it affected him.

They…he, Shane and Tori didn't pick their ninja team, Sensei had done that. So what if…what if Shane and Tori were making the best out of a bad situation, like Darius had? What if they just…made due with what they got?

And it wasn't just them. All the other students had been kidnapped so they _had_ to be Power Rangers, but if Sensei had his pick would he have chosen them?

Probably not.

Until the attack he had been pretty sure that Sensei didn't even like them. He had simply made a bad situation…better. But that seemed pretty reasonable; of course you're supposed to make the best of any situation. It was different when lying was involved.

Dustin had had people lie to him all his life, and most of the time…most of the time he thought he deserved it. Because he wasn't smart enough to figure it out, or good enough or…just _enough_, so he had it coming.

The only thing he really wanted was the truth.

He thought he _knew_ this. That Shane and Tori had already proven that they were his friends through thick and thin but…

It all felt so wrong. That stupid book shouldn't make him feel this way.

It was too boring to be able to have that kind of power.

Shane had spent the entire weekend with him, but had he done that because he cared about his _friend_, or did he do that because he cared about getting a ranger back into fighting shape?

Was it a lie?

He wanted; no… he _needed_ an answer. He didn't care what it was, but he needed it and there was only one person he knew that was ruthlessly honest and had no problems with being mean.

Cam.

Shane landed some spinning move and skated off the ramp towards him, wanting to see how good he looked. On a normal day, Dustin would happily tell him while they went over the footage. But not today.

"Dude, am I awesome or what?" Shane burst as he picked up his skateboard, plopping himself down on the bench next to Dustin. They slapped hands before Shane leaned over to look at the camera's view screen.

"Yeah dude, you looked great," Dustin answered, trying to sound as energetic as he normally did.

He didn't quite make it. Shane quirked his eyebrow and pulled off his helmet, looking like he was about to call him out. Dustin decided to interrupt him before he did.

"Hey man, I think I left my coat at Ninja Ops on Friday so I'm gonna have to cut this short."

The look on Shane's face told him that Shane wasn't buying it.

"I don't remember you wearing a coat,"

"Uh…I wasn't when I left… so I have to go get it."

_Smooth Dustin_.

"Okay, I'll go with you," Shane said, beginning to pick up his gear.

"No!" He answered, a little too quickly, grabbing Shane's arm. The others stare reminded him that he was _supposed_ to be playing it cool. So far, not so cool.

He took a breath and let go of Shane's arm. "No," he started, this time softer, "I don't want to cut into your practice time."

Then, to let Shane know that he really was going to Ninja Ops and not to Storm Chargers or somewhere else to do _whatever_ he added, "I'll take the camera back to Cam while I'm there and let you know how the footage turns out."

Shane nodded slowly, satisfied with his story, "Okay, see you later bro."

"Yeah dude," he said as the packed up the camera, "later."

His stomach churned as he walked away, sick with himself.

How many lies would there be?

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Surprisingly enough, it had been a pleasant evening for Cam. For once, he was caught up on his work, there hadn't been any attacks, and there was no training because Dustin was still recovering so he had Ninja Ops mostly to himself. He used this quiet time to tamper with a few of his side projects, including his research on Dustin's cold, which he was frustratingly getting nowhere with. He had "benched" it for the moment. All it seemed to do was make him want to hurl his chair through the nearest window.

Difficult to do in an underground base.

He was in the middle of entertaining the thought of taking a break for some light reading when his computer gave off a chime signaling that one of the rangers was calling him. As he walked over to his console he pondered who it was, and more importantly, why.

If it was Shane, it was either to make sure they were all clear for the night (which is something the red ranger usually forgot to do, so it was improbable that was the case) or it had something to do with Dustin or Tori. Based on what has occurred the past couple of days, his most plausible source for concern was Dustin. If it was Tori (and Cam sincerely hoped it was Tori), it would either be to make sure they were all clear for the night (and unlike Shane, she actually did this _every_ night) or commence in making small talk. On most occasions, it was both.

He appreciated those occasions.

Now, if it was Dustin…it could be genuinely anything. As of yet, Cam had been unable to determine a pattern to Dustin's calls. Sometimes the mechanic called to simply wish him "good morning" despite the actual time of day. He didn't seem to care. Most of these calls Cam got in the evening. Other times Dustin would turn to him for answers to seemingly useless questions instead of going through the trouble of looking in a dictionary…or the internet. Cam couldn't help but feel that he might have misrepresented himself to the yellow ranger. While he may be fond of and possessed extraordinary skills with computers, he, in fact, was not one.

During these instances he would answer as many questions as he had patience (or time) for before he gave up and pretended that their line was breaking up. As much as the yellow ranger was growing on him, he had things to do.

This of course did not sit well with Dustin.

After five of such occurrences the curly-haired teen started to question his fellow rangers to see if their morphers were encountering the same technical difficulties that his had. Cam wasn't sure how that conversation ended, but he did know that it resulted in two _very_ unhappy red and blue rangers who felt more then obligated to share this displeasure with _him_.

And that was before his father had caught wind of it.

Now as team support he had to end his conversations with Dustin _politely_ and was disallowed to do this until a _reasonable_ period of time had passed. It was here that Cam learned that _his_ definition of reasonable and everyone else's definition of reasonable vastly differed.

During one of these calls Dustin had told him with great enthusiasm that he was glad that Cam had managed to get that bug fixed.

"_It could've become a real problem dude." _

Cam had fought the urge to smash his monitor.

He hoped it was Tori.

"Cam here," he stated tersely, settling himself into his chair. Depending on who this was, he would have to get comfy.

"Cam, its Shane."

So this would be a brief call. His evening was still looking bright.

"We're all clear Shane, there's nothing new," he reported and patiently waited for the part were they stopped talking. His project was calling.

"Thanks, but that's not what I'm calling about."

...so this wouldn't be a brief call.

"So what's wrong with Dustin?" He asked, looking longingly at his ray (a few more adjustments and it would be ready for testing).

"Dude, how did you…never mind. Anyway, Dustin's on his way there, says he left his jacket."

So there goes his evening.

"He didn't." If he had Cam would have returned it on Saturday.

"I know that, but he was very insistent."

"So what does he really want?"

"I'm not sure, but something was bothering him. Can you talk to him?"

_Aren't you his best friend?_

"I _can_, and I will," he responded, pulling up the security cameras for the Ops.

"Whatever man, just try to be nice."

"Why ever would I not be?" he answered sarcastically before closing the line.

Just in time. A yellow blur streaked past his outdoor cameras and set off the motion detectors. He keyed those off and made his out of the lab and into the main room just as Dustin finished descending the stairs. They stared at each other awkwardly before Dustin finally worked up the nerve to speak to him.

"Hey…uh…can I… talk to you?" He asked, shuffling his feet, a nervous tick.

"Sure," Cam replied and motioned for him to follow down the hall.

If they were doing this, they were doing it in the sanctity of his lab.

Dustin followed him eagerly.

Instead of offering him a drink, or a seat, or whatever matter of comfort one would most probably offer when discussing things of a touchy feeling matter (because that was what this mostly likely was) Cam grabbed a broom out of the utility closet and offered it to Dustin.

This earned him a look of confusion.

"If you're going to be here, you're going to do something useful."

…so he wasn't the best at being nice, but he couldn't stop himself from being practical. Dustin focused better when his hands were occupied. Also, they wouldn't have to maintain steady eye-to-eye contact.

That wasn't a commitment Cam was ready for.

Dustin nodded in understanding and started sweeping and Cam took his seat back at his lab table so he could work on his project.

He wanted to be distracted too.

After a few minutes of not-completely-terrible working in silence Dustin decided to address his reason for coming. He did so in a rather round-about way.

"Can you fight Cam?"

Instead of dignifying that with a response, Cam waited for him to expand on this comment.

This turned out to be the right thing to do.

"Like, I know you grew up here but Sensei never let you…"

"Yes, I can fight Dustin."

There was expanding, and then there was rambling. If something was bothering him, the rambling was just a guise.

"Oh," Dustin murmured, surprised by his interruption. "That's what I thought."

With that he went back to sweeping, so Cam went back to tinkering with his circuitry. They went back to their "comfortable" silence for a few minutes.

Cam was about to tell him to get to the point before he continued, "I was thinking…maybe…" Dustin frowned at a particularly stubborn speck of lint that would not be swept up, "maybe you should be a ranger."

Cam allowed himself a moment to take that in.

After Flora Bendicus dad had started training him, but Dustin didn't know about that. Or did he? He'd underestimated Dustin before, maybe this was another one of those times. Did his training intimidate him?

"Like, maybe…maybe you should take my morpher," Dustin continued, refusing to make eye contact.

Now that, _that_ was another concept entirely.

"Dustin, you're the yellow ranger," he reminded, setting down his screwdriver. This would require his entire attention.

"I know dude, but why?" Dustin asked, finally looking at him.

_Is that a philosophical question?_

"What?"

"Why am I the yellow ranger?" The mechanic repeated and turned slightly away from him. "You're smarter, you're more reliable, and you're probably a better fighter. So why am _I_ the yellow ranger?"

_Hmm…_

Now what has happened recently that would make Dustin suddenly doubt his ranger capabilities?

"Is this about you getting sick?"

While it had been odd that Dustin had been the only one susceptible to getting a "cold" he didn't think that would be enough to make him want to stop being a ranger.

"…kinda."

Then what was the rest of it? It looked like they were going to go into yet another moment of silence, so Cam decided to prompt him into speaking.

"Dustin, I'm still doing research about…"

"Look," Dustin cut in, taking the bait, "that's not like…the _entire_ reason,"

Cam nudged him on, "Then what is?"

There was a slight pause in the conversation while Dustin retrieved a dustpan from the closet and began to sweep up his many dirt piles. Instead of answering, he asked Cam another question.

"If I were dying, would you tell me you loved me?"

If this were anybody else Cam would demand that they get back to the conversation that they had started, immediately without dallying and stay there. But because this was Dustin, this off the wall comment was most likely relevant to the conversation. The question he was asking wasn't really the question he was asking. It was really something else and whatever it _really_ meant would help them work through this.

Whatever _this_ was.

Dustin's earnest stare indicated that Cam was supposed to respond to this, so he decided to be as vague as he could and prompted, "What?"

That was the best he could do until he got a better feel for how he was supposed to respond.

"Like," Dustin started, sweeping up another pile, "if I was in love with you…"

Cam knew it wasn't relevant but he had to ask, "You're in love with me?"

"No dude, that's gross," Dustin balked, crinkling his nose. "But hypothetically, if I _was _in love with you and I was dying, would you tell me you loved me, even if you didn't?"

For once Cam didn't know the answer. He wasn't sure what Dustin was looking for. Did he want comfort? Did he want the truth? He had a fifty-fifty chance of getting it right.

Cam opted for the comfort route, assuming Dustin was looking for affirmation in his position in their lives.

"….Yes, I suppose."

"Hah, I knew it!" Dustin exclaimed, dropping his broom as he waved his arms wildly.

So yes had been the wrong answer. Then again, they both could have been wrong answers.

"Knew what, all you proved was that-"

"Was that you're a liar!" Dustin declared, jabbing a finger at Cam's chest and for once the tech got to see a glimpse of Dustin underneath the smiles, a taste of the true Dustin.

The Dustin that had been lied to.

"What?" He prodded, honestly with disbelief.

Dustin turned and walked away, bringing his hands behind his head, "And if you'd lie about that…"

So that's what this is about.

"You said this was hypothetical," Cam reminded him, willing Dustin to turn back around. The yellow ranger stared at his shoes instead.

"Do you think we're lying to you?" He continued, cutting to the core of the matter.

There was a moment of stillness.

"…are you?" The yellow ranger asked, distraught thick in his voice.

He thought that they were humoring him, that they simply tolerated him being around.

He didn't know how genuinely _good_ a person he was.

"No. We wouldn't do that."

"Even if the fate of the world was on the line?" He asked, spinning back around to face him, arms tense at his sides.

"I'm not a liar Dustin."

He would stand his ground, because while he may be…grumpy, he _wasn't_ a liar.

"You would be if I was dying." Dustin spat out bitterly, bending down to pick up the discarded broom.

"That's different!"

"How much?" he asked, hands tightening around the handle. "I know what you're thinking, "_Oh, hey, let's keep the dumb guy happy so he'll keep saving the world", _that's what you think when I call you, don't you?"

Cam stepped back as though he had been slapped, then cursed himself for his arrogance. He had been a fool to think Dustin hadn't noticed that.

He couldn't fix the past; he could only fix what was happening now.

That was his job after all.

"You're not dumb Dustin." He reminded, eyes firmly locked to Dustin's. They lit up with anger.

"Hey!" He yelled, giving him a look of betrayal. "Don't…don't do that. I know I'm…"

"You lack focus," Cam interrupted, "you don't always concentrate, but you're not dumb."

Dustin's shoulders slumped and some of the fight came out of him, "There's a difference?"

"A vast one," Cam muttered, watching as Dustin went back to viewing his shoes.

Shaky hands raked through Dustin's hair, "So…I'm not…"

"No, you're not." Cam reiterated, "Take it from a 'smart' person." He waited for Dustin to look at him before he murmured, "You just think differently."

"Oh." He whispered, face disbelieving.

_Is it so hard to believe you're likeable?_

Cam wanted…he didn't know why, but he wanted to find whoever had done this to Dustin and beat them to a pulp. Just...tear them to shreds. There was something about Dustin that just made you want to protect him. Now he knew why Shane and Tori did it all the time.

Speaking of which…

"You should know that Shane and Tori care about you a lot Dustin. They're not just tolerating you," And then he added, "I'm sorry if I made you feel that way."

"…oh," the yellow ranger echoed again, setting the broom against the wall. He leaned against it a moment, gathering his strength.

In all this Cam had forgotten that just yesterday Dustin had been sick. He was probably exhausted right now.

"I'm sorry I bothered you." Dustin choked out before he shoved his hands in his pockets and began to make his way to the door, kicking his feet as he went.

He knew he might regret this but…

"Wait," Cam said, watching as Dustin looked back at him confused. "…you can stay if you want." The sad eyes he got in return made him feel like a real tool.

"I don't want to bother you," Dustin replied dejectedly, moving back towards the door.

"You wouldn't be a bother." He coaxed, hoping the other would turn around.

He did, and Dustin's face lit up in a huge smile. That was all the warning Cam got before he had his arms full of Dustin, back to his normal self.

Good, because brooding Dustin was not the greatest of company.

He would know from brooding Cam.

"But," he wheezed, as Dustin seemed intent on making sure he couldn't breathe, "you have to finish sweeping."

"No problem dude," Dustin blurted before quickly releasing him and grabbing the broom eagerly returning to his work.

Okay, so it wasn't how most people "hung out", but they weren't most people, and it worked for them. Besides, he would be much more open to Dustin's rambles if things were still getting done.

And this way he could make sure Dustin got home safely.

He would tell Shane what happened later.

* * *

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* * *

Endnote:

The rain, of course, is figurative.

First and foremost I would like to thank lemonlovely and Rogue Ranger for your wonderful reviews, they always make me smile. They're also great motivators.

So I had the idea of actually picking up where I left off for once and decided to run with it and got this. I know I briefly covered Dustin's doubts/fears/whatever in chapter 2 but I decided to thoroughly address them in this chapter and see how it went. It was something that I hadn't intended on doing and I think I may have gone a little overboard. But once I got the idea, I had to finish it.

I'll make the next chapter more fluffy to make up for it.

Sorry for the long account of Les Mis, I did my best to keep it short.

Until next time.


	5. Epiphany

Chapter 5

Epiphany

I don't own Sweeney Todd

Takes place during "Snip it, Snip it Good"

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He hated the red guy.

No, hate was an incredible understatement. He more than hated the red guy; he _super_ hated the red guy, with his redness and his dumbness and his…redness. He wouldn't give him the, uh…kindness of being called by his name. He didn't deserve it. What he _deserved_ was to be dragged around by an all-terrain sports vehicle by his ankles through a field of sharp glass and spikes and nails and swords and maces and other things of incredible unhappiness. Without clothes on. When it was raining.

And _then_ when that was done and he thought it was all over and he was huddled and crying like the little baby he was he would get stampeded by a herd of elephants.

Wearing cleats.

If he had the time or the power to do that, he so totally would. But he didn't so he would have to use what he had.

He thought he could eye him? Who did he think he was? No one could eye the almighty powerful yellow guy without _his_ say so. Those were the rules, if the red guy didn't like them then he could just take himself somewhere else. No one was _making_ him stay. The world (and by world, he meant the small area he was currently located because that was all that mattered) would probably be a better place if he _did_ leave. He would go and the world would be all, _"Yeah, the red guy's gone, let's party!"_, and then they would party.

All everybody in the world.

Of course it's only natural to want to get a view of _this_ yellow guy's outstanding glory, but you had to ask first (if you were the red guy), out of respect. Respect must be paid, and if it's not it must be taken.

With fists.

_That's right red guy, prepare to meet Thunder and Lightening._

Wait, no, that wasn't cool enough. Far too common. What's better than thunder and lightening?

Of course there was only one option.

Batman and Robin.

_Could you take that, red guy? You prepared for that? Ready to get smacked down by winged vengeance, the lord of the night and his trusty sidekick? Are you? No? You're not? Well, too bad! Batman and Robin are about to kick your obnoxious, arrogant, stupid red guy butt!_

He thought he was _so_ great. Like being red just made him the greatest thing in the world, greater than sliced bread, no… greater than motocross. Better than everyone else.

Well, he wasn't.

_I have news for you buddy; it's the yellow guy's time to shine._

They didn't need a red guy; they'd be perfectly fine without a red guy. And if they _really _needed one they would go get a new one, a better one. One that made cookies and soup, all the time. In fact, any time they weren't fighting or doing important saving the world stuff that would be all he did. Just cook and bake and cook and bake and nothing else. Except he would also do the dishes, because _this_ yellow guy sure wasn't going to do that. Maybe they would keep _this_ stupid red guy around so he could do that. That was all he was good for anyway.

That was all he deserved to do…except that dragging thing with the elephants.

He couldn't fight this feeling, this…_anger_ that kept building and building inside him like a volcano that's about to erupt, but instead of lava it's rage, rage that made him wanna- made him wanna-

Punch…and kick…and choke…and hurt. Oh, how he wanted to _hurt._ To take away everything that made him feel bad inside and share it with everyone around him, starting with _him._ He wanted, no, _needed_ to see the red guy suffer. He needed to hear him cry out in pain as badly as he needed to breathe. He couldn't stop. That was the only thing that mattered. Just him and the red guy. _That_ red guy, the source of his frustration.

It was his only purpose.

This must be what animals felt like. All wild and crazy and doing whatever they wanted, whenever the wanted, with no pants on.

He wouldn't go that far, even if he kind of wanted to try. It sounded…freeing.

No, now wouldn't be a good time to take off his pants.

Enough of that, it was time to focus at the battle at hand.

He blocked another punch from his new sworn enemy (forget Lothor, he was nothing next to this guy) and went for a left jab to the stomach, getting blocked in return. They pulled back and continued to circle each other, waiting for the other one to show an opening. This had been going on forever without either one of them managing to get a hit. As much as he hated to admit it, they were too evenly matched. He went for another charge and was cut off by a blast of air that threw him against a nearby car. He tumbled over the hood and rolled off on the far side, ducking behind the car to catch his breath.

He was _so_ _mad._ Fighting in a parking lot had cut him completely off from his element, but of course the red guy had full access to his.

He needed to end this, _now._

It was time to kick it up a notch, and he knew just the thing to do it.

He waited until the red guy went back on the offensive and brought up his fist for a punch. A punch that would never make it. Just as red pulled back he leaped back over the car and whipped out his weighted rope (a rather handy tool) and slung it at him, getting it to wrap around the others right arm. He was fishing for fight.

_Hook, line, and sinker._

Smiling underneath his helmet, he yanked red forward as hard as he could while keeping his right arm flexed in front of him. If he couldn't land a punch on red, he would bring red to the punch.

He braced himself for the fatty. There was a slight jolt of pain as red curled around his fist, and he felt, just for a second, this incredible _rush_ of happiness surge through him. Like eating your favorite ice cream on a cold winter's day. Unfortunately, this second ended when red continued bowling forward and knocked him to the ground.

He must've yanked harder than he thought.

His helmet bounced off the ground twice and the air was completely knocked out of his body as red guy landed on top of him. For a moment they just laid there, simply recovering. He tried to catch his breath but the dizziness and the added weight of the low-life red made that incredibly hard to do. Red, who only had to adjust to his new position and the rope around his arm, recovered first. He pulled up his legs so that he was straddling yellow, and wrapped _his_ newly acquired rope around yellow's right hand.

That wasn't going to flow. No way, no how.

Just as red began to peel the weighted end off of his arm, yellow lunged forward (despite the lack of air and the pain in his head) and looped the rope attached to his arm over red's left shoulder and around his head. Red grabbed at him with his free hand but yellow was too quick for it to be of any use.

For once, he was going to be the winner. Bet red found that awfully surprising.

_Only awesome people get to breathe, reddy._

He was just about to move behind red and pull the rope tight when red yanked down with his end of the rope, causing yellow's arm to be pulled over his right shoulder and knocking their helmets together.

White hot pain flared in his head allowed him to be distracted long enough for red to grab the loose end of the rope and loop it over his free hand that he had pulled up to steady his head. Red snaked it back behind his body and pulled it tight, forcing his arm behind his back. He was thoroughly tied, and to add to the insult it was with his own rope.

He hated the red guy.

And that's why he wouldn't give up. Not unless he was dead. Not until the very last breath had left his body and he could do no more in the physical world. And even _then_ he would come back and haunt red until the end of _his_ days and _then_ they would duke it out in the afterlife. That's how badly he needed this. He needed to win, he needed _a_ win. Red thought he was useless? That he was the weak link, well he would show him. He would show all of them!

His head was throbbing from his rough treatment but it was his only available tool, and he wasn't about to not use it just because of a little "internal damage". Only the weak worried about that kind of thing. He pulled his helmet back (and before red could get the weight off (it _had_ been one of his better throws)) he whipped forward, head butting dead-red as hard as he could.

The world erupted in stars, but he wouldn't let that stop him like he had before. He had learned from his mistake. Instead he chose to drop all his weight to the ground, spinning dumb-red full circle before pulling him down. Surprised from the head butt, red had let go of the loose end of the rope that had held yellow's left arm. Now, they both had one free hand.

Unfortunately yellow was still stuck with red on top of him.

He was getting sick of bottoming.

Red must have taken a page from his book (a marvelous book, the king of books, the grandest book in the entire freaking _universe_) or had finally gotten used to all the shocks and recovered faster this time, stopping yellow before he could free his right arm. Red hauled him back forward so that they were both crouched facing each other.

For a second they studied each other.

So they had gone from throwing useless punches to playing a useless game of tug-a-war.

_It's his fault. If he just stopped fighting this would be over by now._

He decided to change the game again. After all, they've got weapons, why don't they use them?

Red was one step ahead of him, the smarmy jackwagon, mirroring him as he reached for his sword. They were ninja's; using swords was what they did. There was a brief trip-up when they both attempted to jump back and got caught in the rope, causing them to stumble into each other.

Today they were not the most graceful of ninjas.

They straightened and adjusted for the rope, clashing away with their blades. They kept the cord taunt as they circled around each other, never letting it slack so the other couldn't go back to pulling. When their swords locked yellow went for a kick to the stomach, only to have red block it with the rope, bouncing his leg back at him. His moment of imbalance was all fool-red needed, and he pulled the rope once more, spinning yellow until he had his back to him. Red pinned his right arm behind his back, and went for the final blow. Yellow blocked it with his sword, and the two were locked, pressed tightly together. This was not on purpose. Red was pushing forward to hold his enemy in place. Yellow pressed back to get more space in between himself and the blades that were so near his face.

If he wasn't trying to hurt him, he would think red was making moves on him.

_Like, that would ever happen._

He had bigger things to worry about. Maybe he could use his head again and knock red in the face with his helmet, or better yet, kick him in the knee and knock him off balance, then he wouldn't be able to defend himself...oh, maybe he could-

"_Use your inner strength to free yourselves from the Snipster's spell"_

Was that Sensei?

What was he doing in his head?

And what was…wait a minute; what was _he _doing fighting Shane? The bad guy was over _there._ Dustin could see him with his own eyes (which was good because if he missed the giant metal bug looking guy with the giant scissors sticking out of his head he would be worried). Had he just been watching the whole time?

That was kinda sick.

How long had he and Shane been fighting each other? And why? Why did he want to-

"We were under a spell man," Shane commented, as though he could read his mind.

Oh…that made sense.

"Dustin?" Shane continued, pulling the rope off Dustin's arm.

Dustin turned his head slowly to look at him, "What?"

"Could you stop leaning on me?" The red ranger asked, freeing himself from the rope.

There was a brief pause where Dustin noticed he _was_ leaning on him.

"…but my head hurts," He complained, making no move to…move.

He was comfy.

"We'll take care of that later."

"…fine," he gave in, straightening up. Shane clapped him on the shoulder and they brought up their swords, ready for anything.

It was time to get the real bad guy.

-:-:-:-:-:-

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Dustin was in love with Leonard. For Cam, there was no doubt in that. The moment they had ended their mission debriefing the mechanic had attached himself to the front of his tank, poking at it incessantly in an attempt to evoke a reaction from the frog. Assuming it was a him. Cam hadn't bothered trying to look up what kind of species it was, and was therefore unable to determine its gender. It's not like it mattered, male frogs and female frogs ate the same thing.

He almost regretted leaving Leonard out in the main room of Ninja Ops.

He was beginning to think that this may have been a better gift for Dustin then for _him_, seeing as the yellow ranger took it upon himself to come over and feed Leonard almost every night. It was ironic that Cam's responsibility for animal caretaking had been questioned considering his father's current condition. Still, his floors got swept every night, so he wasn't complaining. He might start inviting Dustin over on the weekends if he could make him dust. Cam hated dusting. He felt his skills could be put to much better (and intellectually demanding) use.

Cam was presently speaking with Tori about her trip, her deeper connections with her element (it was a good thing she had been the one chosen because the other two imbeciles would have never figured it out) and her clever way of outfoxing Marah and Kapri. Not that this was a terribly difficult task to complete but it made Tori feel accomplished so he listened patiently. It was only with half an ear though. The other half he reserved for the remaining asinine rangers congregated around Leonard discussing plans. It was Thursday, a school night. They should be studying and on a normal day Cam would feel obligated to bully them into going home. However, the repeated blows to Dustin's head altered that notion. He may have a mild concussion and he needed to be monitored.

It might as well be by someone he liked.

Cam had done a brief check up on him as soon as they had returned to Ninja Ops, but Dustin was insistent that he had merely obtained a mild headache and that Tylenol would take care of it. It was unfortunate that many of the symptoms of a concussion coincided with Dustin's natural state of being. Shane would be able to determine any deviations if they occurred.

"So…movie night?" Dustin asked, still focusing on Leonard. His patience was rewarded with a hop (not of his instigation, just be clear) and Cam could clearly see him mouth the word _"cool"_ before going back and repeating the entire process. His fascination was unwarranted.

Frogs hopped; it wasn't exactly new data.

"Sure dude, I've got this new one that's just _awful_," Shane replied, watching Dustin with an intensity that mirrored the yellow rangers focus to Leonard. Cam wondered how guilty Shane was feeling about beating the tar out of Dustin. The very nature of their relationship cemented him as a protector, caretaker, defender.

How did it feel when all that was stripped away?

"But in a good way, right?" Dustin continued, taking a moment to look at Shane. He had decided to go ahead and feed Leonard. He never bothered asking.

Cam used to think he wasn't as big a push over as Shane.

_I guess that one's out the window._

Dustin appeared to be fine, but then again Dustin _always_ appeared to be fine until he reached his breaking point, a habit that he had sadly conditioned himself into. It was another reason Cam never bothered to nag him about Leonard, the frog (as far as Dustin was concerned) appeared to be almost therapeutic in nature. Still, he sincerely hoped Dustin didn't fall into another state of disillusionment. It probably wouldn't happen, but he would give Shane the head's up just in case.

He would also have to address Monday night's conversation, as oddly enough, that hadn't happened yet.

"What other kind of bad is there?" Shane replied cheekily, leaning against the table.

The bad kind of bad. It's assumed from the connotation of the word.

"Sweet. Let's jet," Dustin ventured, finished with his frog-associated duties.

Shane paused for a moment. "You go ahead man, I need to wrap some things up," he countered, briefly flicking his gaze over to Cam, knowing full well he was listening.

Good, he wanted to do this now.

"Okay, I'll get snacks," Dustin exclaimed, hopping up and down in place. He stopped suddenly and placed a hand on his head, dizzy from his displacement. Perhaps Cam _should_ make him stay the night for observation anyway, regardless of his feelings on the matter. Shane's on the same wavelength and moved to steady the yellow-clad teen but Dustin simply waved him off, asserting the wellness of his being.

Shane would take care of him, Cam wasn't worried about that.

The leader nodded and made his way over to Cam, motioning for Tori to go ahead without him. He sent her a look that was regularly practiced between the two of them that openly said _"take care of him."_ She nodded in confirmation and ushered Dustin out the door, keeping her arm firmly wrapped around his. There was no doubt in Cam's mind that he would grow to perfect this look as well.

Without bothering to gesture or speak he turned and walked to his lab, Shane shadowing his movements. He didn't bother grabbing a broom for this particular conversation, it needed to be brief, and he doubted that would fly with Shane.

He opted to start the conversation.

"If it gets worse bring him back immediately, don't…"

"I know," Shane interrupted, looking slightly peeved. "Who do you think you're talking to?"

Cam wasn't one to lose his cool and faced the red ranger, expression unchanged. He had a lot more practice at playing hardball.

"Allow me the privilege of addressing my concerns," he retorted coldly, firmly standing his ground.

Shane glared at him and grunted, "Can we get to the point?" crossing his arms over his chest.

"Fine," Cam said, and the game is on.

Shane nodded and began his prosecution, "What was wrong?"

He was of course, referencing Monday, but Cam couldn't help but pick at him.

"Now or…"

"Playing cute's not really your style," the other ground out, losing his patience.

Cam took a breath and tried to collect himself, for Dustin's sake. He hadn't set out to goad the red ranger, but he made it _so_ tempting. There was just something about Shane that drove him, for lack of better word, "nuts". But now was not a good time to give into that.

"He was insecure about his placement on the team," the tech admitted, waiting for the others reaction. It's exactly what he expected it to be.

The guilty look was back, though unwarranted. It was unrealistic for the red ranger to assume he could protect Dustin from everything…including his own doubts.

Sometimes these things just happened.

"He also thought we might be lying to him."

Before Shane could break in he continued, "But its okay, we talked it out."

"It was partially my fault, anyway," he finished, keeping his eyes locked on Shane's. He didn't miss the look of _hurt_ that flashed up at his words.

Shane endeavored to not let it show, "What made him feel…?"

"He didn't explain that part," Cam cut off, waving his hand absently. "He thought we might be tolerating him because he is a ranger. I let him know that wasn't the case."

Shane turned away from him slightly, his hardened façade crumbling before it dropped away completely. He turned and leaned both arms against one of the tables, dropping his head towards the ground.

"Why you?" He mumbled, loud enough for Cam to know it wasn't rhetorical.

"I think he wanted what he believed to be an impartial opinion," Cam noted, taking a few steps forward. He might not be able to be there for Shane emotionally, but he could at least venture to be there for him physically. To offer his presence was the least he could do.

"What are you saying?" Shane asked, looking back at him.

"You're too close," Cam answered, stopping as he reached Shane's side. He turned so that his back is to the table and crossed his arms, "he was afraid that the intimacy of your relationship would affect your response."

Shane looked away again, scratching his head uncomfortably. "We're not _that _close."

"Where are you going after this?" Cam asked, knowing full well the other's future location. Shane did too, but he was making a point here.

"Dustin's, but…" Shane started, as though he wouldn't go there on a normal day.

Who was he kidding?

"Even if he hadn't gotten the head injury, you probably would still go there, right?"

"Well yeah, but-"

"But nothing, you're best friends," Cam explained (why should he have to explain this?). "He just wanted the opinion of an outsider, someone who he thought had nothing to lose," he finished, watching realization finally dawn on Shane.

"Oh," was the only response he received for his effort.

What as that, their catchphrase? Unoriginal, at best. He decided to point this out (if Cam did it to Shane maybe it would stick) in hopes that he would take the initiative and go out and buy a thesaurus.

"That's what he said," He ground out exasperated, and Shane stared at him incredulously for a moment before the deeper implications of that statement set in. His first reaction is to smack the other's dominant arm.

"Not like that you dimwit," he groused as the leader of the team that's _supposed_ to save the universe laughed at him, clutching his side. He continued for about half a minute before he finally calmed down, wiping a tear from his eye.

_It's not that funny_

"Now get out of here and go check on Dustin," he grumbled, waving him out the door before turning to seclude himself to his world of electronics.

"Hey Cam," he heard from behind him and Shane's hand is on his shoulder, squeezing it tight, "you're only an outsider if you let yourself be one."

"Did you read that in a fortune cookie?" Cam asked sarcastically, refusing to turn around. He didn't know what would happen if he turned around, and that bothered him.

"I'm serious," Shane urged, taking the choice out of Cam's hands by circling around him. Something clicks in his eyes. "You should come with me."

"No, I'm good." Cam said quickly, pushing Shane's arm off.

The red ranger didn't take the hint.

"No, you're not," He proclaimed, cutting in front of Cam and blocking him from his computer. "You want in, there's no better chance than right now."

That was true, but still-

"I'm not going to interrupt your little male bonding ritual."

"You know he'd love it if you'd come."

Why? Cam's barely been nice to Dustin.

Cam searched his mind quickly for an excuse, folding his arms across his chest to buy time. "You might not know this, but you both still need to talk about what happened today, and I'm not impeding that."

That was a pretty good one.

"Take a long bathroom break and we'll be fine," Shane proclaimed, not budging an inch.

…damn it, he was drawing up blank.

"…I have a cough." He stated weakly, and Shane looked at him with an _"Oh no you don't" _face that made Cam feel like he was five again.

"Tough it out, you're going," Shane ordered, grabbing his arm.

Oddly enough, Cam wasn't immensely bothered by this.

Weird.

"…fine, but I'm driving," He declared, allowing himself to be pulled out of Ninja Ops.

He wasn't sure how his father did it, but despite his form he still managed to convey a look of genuine amusement.

-:-:-:-:-:-

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The conversation _may_ have taken longer than Shane thought it would, but he doubted it, and judging by the look on Cam's face he was also surprised by the sight that greeted them when they walked into Dustin's kitchen. It wasn't pillows that were attracted to Dustin, it was messes. In any shape, place, or form.

Still, Shane couldn't help but wonder how the yellow ranger had managed to get himself covered in flour in the 10 minutes they had been separated.

"Cam, dude!" The yellow ranger exclaimed, happiness radiating from him. Forgetting the flour he pounced on Cam, pulling him into a bear hug. Shane wished that he had a camera so that he could capture the look on Cam's face. It would be a great screensaver.

It was his turn next and he gladly opened his arms to welcome the hug. Over Dustin's shoulder Cam was still reeling in surprise, staring blankly at his dirty shirt.

Life's a ride with Dustin on board.

"I can't believe you managed to get him to come! That was the business that you had to stay behind for wasn't it? Awesome!" The mechanic rambled, excitedly patting Shane's arm and wagging his finger at him knowingly.

The red ranger let him have this one; there was no need to go into thorny details.

He had been…worried, he supposed, about letting Cam butt-in on his and Dustin's ritual, but Cam needed to be more involved and this was a good way to do it. And Dustin was ecstatic, rocking back and forth on his heels while talking to them animatedly. With their drastically different personalities Shane wondered how this would turn out.

Cam, in his quest for knowledge, cut him off with a question that has been on both their minds. "Why are you covered in flour?"

"Oh, that?" Dustin asked innocently, brushing some of the flour off his shirt. "It's for cookies man."

"You know the flour goes in the bowl right?" Cam asked sarcastically, observing the far spread effects of the white powder. It wasn't just Dustin that was covered.

It was like a flour bomb had sparked to life by Dustin's endless energy.

The patient look Dustin gave the tech in return was simply hysterical, reminding Shane of his teacher from kindergarten, and he had to fight very hard to keep a straight face. He invited Cam; he would make him feel welcome.

Mostly.

Then Dustin's look turned bashful, "I had to open a new bag and it kind of…."

"Exploded?" Shane supplied, grabbing a towel to wipe excess flour off the counters.

"Yeah man, but I got what I needed in the bowel."

"Why don't you finish that, and we'll clean this up?" He offered, already hitting the less-covered counters first. He would work his way in.

"Dude I can take care of my own messes," The yellow ranger frowned, folding his arms. A puff of flour rose as he did so.

_Just let me do this for you._

But before he could argue Cam answered for him, "We insist." And grabbed a broom and set to work.

Shane expected a protest, a shout, a very dramatic and convincing expression of refusal and was surprised when Dustin smiled and nodded, quickly finding the recipe he had been using (under the mess) and continuing where he had left off.

So it was okay when Cam said they wanted to clean, but when he said it, it was wrong?

What was that about?

Shane thought he hadn't let the fact that he was bothered show, but Cam sent him a look that clearly said _"Stop being stupid"_ between his sweeps.

Okay, so it was a little bit stupid. But he wasn't jealous.

"Hey," Dustin broke in, interrupting his thoughts. "What's the difference between baking soda and baking powder?"

"Baking soda is a single-acting powder that must be baked as soon as it is added to a mixture, it has a bitter taste that must be counteracted by something else, such as buttermilk, it is usually used in cookies. Baking _powder_ on the other hand can be a double-acting powder, so it will be alright if you don't bake it immediately on mixing. It has both an acid and a base so it has a neutral taste and is used in cakes and biscuits." Cam replied, as natural as ever.

Shane knew he was smart, but cooking? As a kid he must have read encyclopedia sets on rainy days.

And sunny days.

Actually, all forms of days.

Dustin took his response in stride, "So you soda a cookie, and you powder a cake?"

"Essentially," Cam answered, emptying his dustpan into the trashcan.

"Awesome," the curly-haired teen whispered, mostly to himself.

Shane couldn't help but be a little…befuddled by what had just happened. This hadn't been the first time these two had hung out. They had done this before.

How had _he _become the third wheel?

"You okay dude?"

When he snapped his head up and saw both of them staring at him he felt his face begin to flush.

"Yeah, I'm fine," He affirmed and went back to wiping down the counter. When he looked back up a few seconds later they were both still staring at him.

"Dude," Dustin said, clearly not believing him.

"What he said," Cam agreed, nodding his head at his new partner in crime.

Shane tried not to feel jealous about this.

"There!" Dustin exclaimed, pointing at him.

It was his turn to be confused, "What?"

"That look," Cam supplied, as though he were trying to be helpful.

He wasn't not sure what Cam is trying to be right now, but it wasn't helpful.

Dustin looked thoughtful for a moment, rubbing his chin with his still-dirty hands. Then a look of excitement lit up his face and he snapped his fingers, clearly an idea in mind.

"Dude," he began, looking at Cam, "I think it's time for a group hug." He grabbed the tech's arm before he could protest and dragged him over to Shane before attacking him, pulling all three of them together. Once the awkwardness passed…it wasn't that bad. Shane smiled; it looked like Dustin's cure for everything had worked once more. Everything was better with a hug.

The fact that he had finagled Cam into it only made it better.

"Don't get used to this," Cam growled before finally relaxing into it.

_Fight it all you want Cam, but you know you love it._

* * *

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* * *

Endnotes:

Okay, so it didn't start fluffy, but it got there…eventually.

Of course I would like to thank the ever fabulous Rogue ranger and vivacious lemonlovely for your support. It's thanks to you guys I produce my chapters so quickly.

Also, in the series, they actually have these ropes, though they never talk about were they came from and I'm pretty sure they never use them again. I might bring them back, just think of the possibilities.

I originally intended to have the last scene just be a Shane/Dustin fluff-fest but after Cam's comment on being an outsider I knew Shane wouldn't leave him alone because he's to nice a guy, and then the third wheel thing started and...well, look at what happened.

I'm tempted to change this into a three-way, simply because I like writing Cam so much.

Any takers?

Happy New Years, everyone!

Until next time.

The conversation _may_ have taken longer than Shane thought it would, but he doubted it, and judging by the look on Cam's face he was also surprised by the sight that greeted them when they walked into Dustin's kitchen. It wasn't pillows that were attracted to Dustin, it was messes. In any shape, place, or form.

Still, Shane couldn't help but wonder how the yellow ranger had managed to get himself covered in flour in the 10 minutes they had been separated.

"Cam, dude!" The yellow ranger exclaimed, happiness radiating from him. Forgetting the flour he pounced on Cam, pulling him into a bear hug. Shane wished that he had a camera so that he could capture the look on Cam's face. It would be a great screensaver.

It was his turn next and he gladly opened his arms to welcome the hug. Over Dustin's shoulder Cam was still reeling in surprise, staring blankly at his dirty shirt.

Life's a ride with Dustin on board.

"I can't believe you managed to get him to come! That was the business that you had to stay behind for wasn't it? Awesome!" The mechanic rambled, excitedly patting Shane's arm and wagging his finger at him knowingly.

The red ranger let him have this one; there was no need to go into thorny details.

He had been…worried, he supposed, about letting Cam butt-in on his and Dustin's ritual, but Cam needed to be more involved and this was a good way to do it. And Dustin was ecstatic, rocking back and forth on his heels while talking to them animatedly. With their drastically different personalities Shane wondered how this would turn out.

Cam, in his quest for knowledge, cut him off with a question that has been on both their minds. "Why are you covered in flour?"

"Oh, that?" Dustin asked innocently, brushing some of the flour off his shirt. "It's for cookies man."

"You know the flour goes in the bowl right?" Cam asked sarcastically, observing the far spread effects of the white powder. It wasn't just Dustin that was covered.

It was like a flour bomb had sparked to life by Dustin's endless energy.

The patient look Dustin gave the tech in return was simply hysterical, reminding Shane of his teacher from kindergarten, and he had to fight very hard to keep a straight face. He invited Cam; he would make him feel welcome.

Mostly.

Then Dustin's look turned bashful, "I had to open a new bag and it kind of…."

"Exploded?" Shane supplied, grabbing a towel to wipe excess flour off the counters.

"Yeah man, but I got what I needed in the bowel."

"Why don't you finish that, and we'll clean this up?" He offered, already hitting the less-covered counters first. He would work his way in.

"Dude I can take care of my own messes," The yellow ranger frowned, folding his arms. A puff of flour rose as he did so.

_Just let me do this for you._

But before he could argue Cam answered for him, "We insist." And grabbed a broom and set to work.

Shane expected a protest, a shout, a very dramatic and convincing expression of refusal and was surprised when Dustin smiled and nodded, quickly finding the recipe he had been using (under the mess) and continuing where he had left off.

So it was okay when Cam said they wanted to clean, but when he said it, it was wrong?

What was that about?


	6. Where are you?

Chapter 6

Where are you?

I don't own Spamalot.

Takes place during Return of Thunder Part 1.

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It was one thing to be blown off by Roger Hannah because he was a super important dude that was busy being awesome and doing awesome things in the world of motocross (which was awesome), but it was totally another thing to be blown off by Hunter and Blake. _That _was not cool. And what's up with that? After going through the all the trouble of hunting down Tori in the woods (and getting _his_ glorious work-of-art bike trashed) they're going to go and give him the cold shoulder? Weren't they on the same side?

They all had morphers, they all wanted Lothor to lose, so it would make sense for them to be allies right?

If the airhead could figure it out, why couldn't they?

Dustin had expected Hunter to be a little standoffish but he thought he and Blake were cool. Maybe not best-friends cool, but they could at least hold a conversation. Now he didn't even want to _try_ to do that.

Thunder rangers were freaking temperamental.

Dustin had even put in a good word for them when Roger Hannah had stopped by the shop, shouldn't that count for something? He ignored the pros obvious disinterest in his demo tape…even if he had worked really hard on it.

_Sigh…_Dustin kind've wished they were under Lothor's spell again. Not the _"let's beat you down"_ part, but the part were they at least talked to him and treated him like a human being and not like a pesky fly you couldn't get rid of. Even if they were only being nice to win their way into Ninja Ops. That was beyond the point.

What he needed was a second opinion, someone who would be sure to back him up.

He knew just the guy.

Dustin looked around the front room of Storm Chargers and saw that Kelly was occupied with some customers and did another quick check to make sure no one was watching _him_ before sneaking back into the storage room. He could fake looking for a part for five minutes. He had only done it like, a thousand times. He closed the door as quietly as he could and made his way to the back of the room, taking another quick look around (because you could never be too sure) before bringing his morpher up to his mouth.

"Dustin to Shane," he whispered, keeping his eyes locked on the bottom of the door. If anyone was coming his way he would see their shadows. Ever since he became a ranger he got to do a lot more cool movie-like things. His favorites were the explosions that went off behind them. Cam had tried to explain it to him once, something about a power overload or backlash or whatever, but he didn't catch it. All he knew was that it made them look like total rock stars. Rock stars with swords.

He hoped Shane wasn't somewhere public…dumb, he should've beeped his morpher first. He always forgot to do that. He had almost gotten Tori in trouble when he called her one Saturday, but luckily her younger sister was watching the tv with the volume like, blasting loud, and no one had heard it, despite the fact that her entire family had been home at the time. Cam had really chewed him out for that one.

Dustin hoped he wouldn't get yelled at again.

"Didn't you learn anything from Cam's lecture?" Shane greeted, not in an angry way but more in an _"Oh- you" _kind of way that had a certain…affection to it. Because Dustin was likeable, dagnabit.

He knew that now.

"I forgot," he admitted, scratching his head bashfully. He hadn't _meant_ to forget, these things just got away from him sometimes. Tori liked to joke that one day he would forget to look before he morphed and reveal his "secret" identity. He wasn't _that_ bad. He always checked when he was by himself.

Well…mostly.

"You're lucky the skate park's empty today man," the other grunted, on the move. He must be getting somewhere private, like a tree. Trees were super private. Unless they were being used to hold a piñata, but those were easy to spot and therefore avoid.

_Find the empty tree Shane, you can do it._

"I guess people do homework on Wednesday's dude," He replied, thinking about that mountain of algebra he had waiting for him. Maybe he would take it over to Ninja Ops later and get Cam to help him out with it.

"Probably," Shane noted, and Dustin could tell he had stopped. He must have finally found the tree, "Now what's the problem?"

See, Shane knew it was something important because he wouldn't call during work otherwise. No social time when he was on the clock for this guy. Tori still hadn't figured that out yet.

"Something's up with Hunter and Blake, they were acting really weird."

"What kind of weird?"

"Mean weird, like they didn't want to talk to me. They just blew me off." He scrunched his nose at the memory before continuing, "Do you think something bad happened to them?"

That sort of thing tended to happen to them a lot. First their parents, then they got betrayed…Dustin thought _he_ had bad luck but it was nothing compared to those two guys.

"Nah, I think they're just being themselves," Shane murmured bitterly. He was still a little upset over how easily the Thunders had beaten them earlier. In their defense, they hadn't been Power Rangers for very long when they had fought them. If they took them now it would be a different story.

"_Ooooh_, don't tell that to Tori," Dustin joked and then gave a slight shudder. Nothing had no fury like Tori on an anger streak.

"It's the truth; those guys have some major issues," Shane insisted stubbornly. He paused before adding, "Don't sweat it to much, alright?"

"Alright," Dustin agreed. "I just thought you'd like to know." And he wanted a break from work, his fingers needed some relaxing.

"Thanks," Shane replied, genuinely happy with his report. He would never say it, but Shane loved being in charge and Dustin had to hand it to him, he was good at it.

"When are you off work?" Shane asked, breaking him out of his thoughts.

"In about an hour, I just have to finish up this one last bike."

Shane's question meant that afterwards it would be hangout time; Dustin wondered what they were going to do.

"Great, meet me at Julie's when you're done," Shane decreed, back to his normal happy self.

That meant ice cream! Julie's creamery was the best place in town to get it, and it had every flavor that could be thought of. If you even _thought_ about thinking about inventing a new flavor they would come out with like, three more, and they were all delicious. He loved going there, but didn't get to go often. Tori seemed to have some weird thing against one of the girls that worked there (he had tried to ask her about it but just mentioning Julie's seemed to make her angry) and Shane (for some unknown reason) sometimes wanted things _other_ then ice cream.

Dustin would never understand it.

"Awesome! I'll even buy."

That might convince Shane to go with him more often.

"I got this bro," the other assured. "Don't worry about it."

But he _wanted_ to worry about it, what good was earning money if you didn't share it with the people you cared about?

"I'm the one with a steady job, I'll get it." That, in Cam's words, was a logical argument, and if Cam would think he was right then Shane _had_ to, unless he found out that Cam agreed with him and felt like disagreeing with Cam on principal.

They butted heads a lot.

…so he would agree with him, unless he didn't. Smart Dustin.

"Technically _I'm_ inviting _you, _so I have to buy." Shane reasoned.

There was a pause where Dustin just stared at his morpher in disbelief. Why was Shane so set on this? It was just ice cream.

It was time to put his foot down.

"Dude, I'm buying," and that was that, so _there_.

But apparently Shane disagreed with his internal dialogue and insisted, "No, I'll get it."

"Seriously, let me do it," he growled, reaching the end of his patience. He was usually a pretty laid back kind of dude, but this fellow was pushing it.

"What do you have against me buying you ice cream?" Shane asked, clearly aggravated. Well he wouldn't be if he'd just drop it.

"What do you have against me buying _you _ice cream?" Dustin countered, tapping his foot. What, his money wasn't good enough for him?

"That's the best comeback you've got?"

…low blow man.

He opened and closed his mouth a few times, unsure of what to say. So he wasn't the quickest thinker, there's no need to rub it in. Forget this; he had dealt with enough stupid today from Blake and Hunter. He didn't need it from his best friend.

"You know what," he started, hoping he sounded more angry than sad, "forget it man."

Just as he began to click this conversation over (or hang up in morpher-world) Shane yelled, "Wait!"

He stared at his morpher for a moment, waiting for Shane to…explain his sudden case of craziness.

"Tori told me about Roger Hannah," the other finished, much more calmly.

_Oh_…_that _thing, that thing Dustin was trying to forget ever happened, but understanding why it happened, because Roger Hannah was a super important dude that was busy being awesome and doing awesome things and-

"...that's nothing man, I shouldn't have bothered him," He whispered because he _shouldn't_ have. In the riding world he was just a nobody, and what was a nobody doing trying to leap to the top of the heap with a team like Factory Blue?

"Dustin…" Shane sighed, and the yellow ranger couldn't pin down what emotion was in that, because it sounded a little sad, but not really, and a little happy, but not an actual happy-kind of happy but a…"just let me buy you ice cream."

Because Shane wanted him to feel better. And short of hunting Roger Hannah down and making him watch Dustin's tape, treating him to super delicious ice cream was the best thing he could do to make that happen. And as dumb as it sounded, the thought made him feel really warm and cozy on the inside.

Suddenly Dustin felt really stupid for arguing with his best friend over who was going to pay, because really, who turned down eating the best ice cream on the planet for free? It was like being paid to have glory and happiness and sunshine rained down upon you in a never ending parade of magical…wonderfulness. He had the best-best friend. Other people might think _they_ had might-kinda-sorta the best-best friend ever, but they didn't even compare, they didn't even _think_ about _thinking_ comparing to his best friend. In a _"my best friend's better than yours"_ contest Shane would not only win first place, he would win 2nd place and 3rd place and Most Valuable Player and Miss Congeniality and everyone else would be stuck with crummy participation trophies.

"…chocolate?" He asked tentatively, because chocolate was just bomb and he wanted some in his belly _now._

He heard a sigh before Shane responded, "All the flavors they have and you want chocolate."

"It's _so_ good," He insisted and then he laughed because Shane wasn't mad at him and they were still good and he was going to get some ice cream. Better yet, he was getting ice cream with Shane.

"Fine, chocolate," the other surrendered.

Dustin didn't gloat (even though he really wanted to), but he couldn't stop himself from thrusting his fist into the air in victory.

This winning thing, he could get used to it.

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Shane hadn't noticed it before he had become a ranger, but Blue Bay Harbor had a _lot_ of abandoned factory places. They weren't necessarily all factories, but they _were _deserted and they attracted Lothor's monsters like fly's to honey. Whatever the reasoning behind this phenomenon, it worked for Shane. Less people nearby meant that they could focus all their attention on the monster instead of making sure civilians got away safely without getting injured. It also meant that they didn't have to worry about someone figuring out who they were when they forgot that they weren't supposed to call each other by their actual names. It was an honest slip-up. What else were they supposed to call each other, their colors? They needed code names or something. Maybe they could go by what their zord animal was. He could do Hawk. It just sounded cool. Dustin would be more then happy with Lion and Tori could work with Dolphin.

…That was actually a good idea. He'd run it by them later.

They kept their backs to each other, each scanning an area of the chosen battleground. Everyone who had been here had left and it looked like the baddie went with them…which was odd. No, he couldn't have left. He had attacked those people to draw them out. He must be hiding in order to wait for the most opportune moment to attack. There were two options then. Option number one, split up and flush him out, or option number two, sit and wait for him to go on the offensive. Both had their advantages. With number one they could meet him on _their _terms, but whoever found him would be on their own until the other two arrived. Shane hadn't gotten a feel for how strong this guy was, so he was a little wary of option one. He didn't want to put anyone in unnecessary danger. With option number two they got to stay together, the downside was they would all be in one spot, making them sitting ducks if the guy decided to blast them from a distance. This made Shane wary of option number two. He didn't like it; he didn't like it at all.

Snail man decided to take the choice out of his hands by throwing another option on the table, i.e., his option, the one Shane _hadn't _know about. The entire factory filled with fog, flushing through pipes and passageways before it descended on the rangers with vengeful glee. It literally attacked them, hurling them in separate directions. As soon as it hit them Shane lost visual contact with Tori and Dustin, which was something he _would_ have worried about but he had bigger problems to deal with as the fog assaulted him, sparking on contact and throwing him into what felt like a metal wall. The shouts he heard from his teammates indicated that the same thing had happened to them as well. Unfortunately, he couldn't tell were the shouts were coming from and he _still_ hadn't seen any sign of that evil Snail.

It was just one of those days.

"Cam, where are the others?" The tech _might_ have better luck then he did, but then again, this fog could be nastier then he thought.

A frustrated sigh confirmed his theory, "I can't get a fix on them, that fog must being doing something to my sensors."

Shane couldn't blame him for his bad mood.

"How about the bad guy?" If Cam couldn't even find the rangers odds were he wouldn't be able to find their bad guy either, but it didn't hurt to ask.

He wouldn't be a very good leader if he didn't.

"Same problem."

The red ranger bet anything that Cam would evil-fog proof everything as soon as he was able, if there was a way to do such a thing. If there wasn't, he would invent a way, and _then_ proof everything.

It must be really tiring to be Cam.

…he was still stuck on this wall. He didn't really have any other choices. If he went blindly wandering into the fog he would be walking right into the enemy's hands. He could have anything out there, maybe a trap, or maybe Shane would just get thrown into something else.

First things first, he needed to get rid of the fog. Luckily, he had the power of air on his side.

Unluckily, that was the exact moment something dropped on him from above.

A shout of, "Eat this snail man!" was his only warning before Dustin tackled him from above, shoving the red ranger to the ground in less than a second. The wind was totally knocked out of him as the other completed his attack, and his entire body began to throb. His chest and back got the worst of it and cried out in pain from being sandwiched between Dustin and the oh-so-hard concrete.

He had to hand it to him, if Dustin had actually hit the snail guy that probably would have been a good attack

"…oops," the yellow ranger murmured bashfully when he saw who he had attacked, and quickly rolled off his teammate before grabbing his arm and pulling him roughly to his feet. Shane rose with a groan, clutching his ribs.

That would be hurting later.

"Sorry man, I thought you were..." Shane waved him off, knowing full well who he thought he was.

How high had Dustin been thrown?

He decided he would ask as soon as they regrouped a little, Dustin's shouts were sure to attract something, and whether it was another fog attack or their missing snail Shane didn't want to find out. With his left hand he grabbed the yellow ranger's arm pulled him away from Shane's landing spot, using his right hand to guide them along the wall. This way they could move but they wouldn't be such sitting targets.

The wall turned out to be a giant cylinder, and he followed the curve about halfway around before asked, "How did you get above me?"

"I got blasted into something up there and fell down onto some pipes. Honestly I thought I was on the ground until I heard you moving underneath me," the other confessed, rubbing his back.

At least Shane wouldn't be the only one in pain tomorrow.

"Do you have any idea where Tori is?" The leader asked, frowning at his surroundings. Aside from the tank, it was all fog.

Dustin shook his head no, waving away some of the fog from his face, "No, I was hoping you would…"

Suddenly he was thrown forward into Shane by an unseen force. The red ranger grabbed onto him and held tight, not wanting to get separated again. Reuniting had been painful enough the first time; he would do without another round of _that_. Instead of the ground they were knocked into what Shane assumed was another tank, shocking them both for a minute.

Alright, enough of this. It was time to take action.

Keeping one of his arms locked around Dustin (just in case), Shane held up his other and focused all his energy before yelling, "Power of air!"

A gust of wind blew through the factory pushing away all that nasty fog. For the moment, everything was clear. About 15 feet away he could see Tori stumbling out of a building clutching her head, to her left about 10 feet was a shattered window. That must have been what she had gotten thrown through; Shane hadn't even heard the glass break.

Man, this fog was _good_.

But they were better. They were going to find this guy, beat him down, and be done with mission debriefing before dinner. As long as they stopped him from using his fog again they would be fine.

When his thoughts were cut off by a familiar laugh and Shane knew they were dealing with more than one enemy.

This would take longer than he had originally planned.

"Getting cozy with your boy toy?" The crimson ranger taunted from his position on a catwalk high above them.

Shane fought to ignore the anger that flared up at that comment. They weren't toys and he wouldn't give them the pleasure of rising to their bait. If Blake and Hunter wanted to be evil that was just _fine_ but he wasn't going to play their silly games. He was better than that. Instead he focused on scanning Dustin's body for injuries as he stood back in fighting position, and checking over Tori whenever she walked over.

Both appeared to be fine, but he would have Cam do a better check up when they got back.

He opted to get back to the matter at hand.

"You wanna fight?" He yelled, pulling his sword from his sheath. "Then let's fight!"

"I thought you would never ask," Navy mocked before pulling out his pinchers and jumping down to meet them. Crimson followed in suit and grabbed his staff, preparing for battle. Shane wouldn't bother reasoning with them. If they wanted to attack, there wasn't much he could do to change their minds. All he could do is stop them before they hurt anyone else or themselves. That was all. Tori could nag at him later for his command decisions.

Blake rushed at him with the pinchers, forcing Shane to jump back to avoid the weapon. Internally he grumbled, he had wanted to get Hunter for that _"boy toy" _crack earlier.

"Sorry we couldn't give you some more alone time," Navy pushed, humor clear in his voice. "But I thought I was about to lose my lunch."

Shane had to remind himself that Blake's goal was to make him angry so that he would lose focus. He couldn't just give in to the desire to smash his puny face in.

Even if it was very tempting.

They exchanged blows back and forth; Shane stuck on the defensive, never being fast enough to get in more than a few hits. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed that Tori and Dustin didn't fare much better against the crimson ranger.

"Hunter didn't mind though," Blake continued, ignoring his silence. "I think he might have a thing for your yellow guy."

Shane didn't care; the other ranger was just trying to make him mad. That's all this was. The moment he lost focus his face was going to meet yet another wall. Or the ground. He just had to think of this as a test of focus.

"Too bad he's on your team," Blake murmured gleefully, blocking his kick and sweeping his leg underneath Shane, successfully knocking him to the ground. The red ranger rolled away before navy brought his leg down again and pushed himself back into fighting position. "Then again, maybe we could make him an offer, get him to switch sides."

Like Dustin would ever go with them.

"Or," the other continued, "Maybe we could just trick him into it. He's been dumb enough to do that before."

He allowed the red ranger a second to process his jibe, and Shane could tell he was enjoying every minute of this. He knew, he _knew_ that would be the straw that broke the camels back and Shane-

Shane saw red. Disregarding everything he had reminded himself of earlier he threw himself at Blake. While the other had skill he hadn't taken into account Shane's pure ferocity and was unprepared for the tackle that followed. Shane knocked him to the ground and punched him hard in the stomach before the younger thunder brother could recover. The red ranger felt a wave of satisfaction course through him as he heard Blake's _"omf"_ of pain. It was short lived when Hunter (who had watched this occur in disbelief) blasted him with lightening, flinging him off his brother.

Dustin and Tori ran to flank his sides as he rolled to his feet, glaring at Blake and cursing himself. Everything Blake had said was probably a lie, made up specifically with him in mind, and he had fallen for it.

Still, he got one good hit in.

If his luck held up, maybe he would get in another one.

_Hey, if it's a fight they want, it's a fight they get._

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….what?

What just happened? _Something _had just happened… a trivial comment obviously because that was the inherent function of the universe. Something happened; then something else happened, and then something _else_ proceeded to happen, but that wasn't the point Cam was trying to make here. The point was that something had just (in this past second) occurred (and despite the fact that the major function of his job was to monitor what was going on he had _missed _it) that had made not only the Wind Rangers; but the Thunder Rangers disappear into thin air as though they never existed, and neither his computer, his father, nor his eyes could tell him any different. They simply ceased to be. One instant they were fighting, the next instant, nothingness.

If he wasn't so busy being worried he would throw something across the room out of frustration.

His scanners gave him nothing except supply the data he _already_ knew indicating that there was no one piloting the zords. Of course there were pilots, they just weren't there! The question then was where were they? Where did they go? And, most importantly, how could he get them back?

They never should have trusted those Thunder brothers, Tori could say whatever she wanted if that brought her any comfort, but those two were nothing but nuisances. First of all they were dumb enough to trust the word of an evil space ninja (because really, does the title "evil space ninja" inspire trust?), and second, they went out of their way to completely total the only people who were _fighting_ the evil space ninja, who (as mentioned above), was dead set on fulfilling the "evil" part of his title. Lastly, they actually managed to not only hurt the Wind Rangers, but trash their weapons, weapons _Cam_ had spent a great deal of time and effort on.

Wind rangers who…_good_ people who Cam might have become just a _tiny_ bit fond of.

Where they on drugs? What had happened to them? First they were attacking Lothor, or that was the story they sold to Tori, and then the next thing they knew they were back to their favorite pastime _"let's destroy the good guys!"._

…Cam needed to spend less time with Dustin. Or more time reading, either would work.

He attempted to ignore the churning in his stomach at the thought of the yellow ranger. Then he attempted to ignore that Dustin had affected his physical being in any form.

He failed at both efforts.

He had failed him. He had failed _all_ of them. His one lousy job was to monitor and provide support while they were in the field and supply whatever they needed, whenever they might need it. He was to coordinate, inform, and regulate the rangers and he was currently unable to fulfill that duty, rendering him worthless. Dustin always looked to him to be the smart one, but he wasn't all that cracked up to it, was he? Couldn't even fill his own shoes.

Frowning, Cam keyed in some more data to widen up his search options. He stared at the monitor intensely, waiting to see if his work reaped anything. The screen remained stubbornly blank. He smacked the table in frustration, his keyboard jolting slightly at the intensity of his hit.

What had they done to them? They had done _something_. Were they jetted away into an alternate dimension? Did they get teleported to another planet? Did Lothor actually manage to capture them? What happened?

And why couldn't he find them?

Cam whipped his hands away from the keyboard and shoved them into his lap, slowly intertwining them as he exhaled. He folded his legs onto his chair Indian style and closed his eyes, deeply inhaling through his nose before slowly exhaling through his mouth once more. Blaming himself wasn't getting him anywhere, and neither was worrying. He needed to clear his mind, free it of all the emotions that were distracting him from doing his job. He needed a fresh slate.

Cam took his time, making sure to do everything right so that he could begin to function properly again.

_How did it come to this?_

He never thought…it sounded so _cold _in retrospect, but he never thought he would ever come to care about these rangers enough for him to get like this. He had always meant to keep a wall of professionalism between them, to remain emotionally disengaged, but somehow they had wormed (and it was Dustin that started it) their way under his skin and were driving him crazy.

They were family now.

And he just wanted them safe.

Inhale

_Focus_

Exhale

_Focus_

Inhale

_om mani padme hum_

Exhale

_om mani padme hum_

He continued his mental chanting until he felt a semblance of peace return. Cam persisted with his slow breathing but slowly opened his eyes; readjusting to the gentle glow of his monitor, the core of his work displayed before him, balancing in between reality and mental construct.

There was nothing, no anger, no frustration, simply himself and his work. Just him and his work. Speaking of which, that was something he needed to get back to. He withdrew his hands from his lap and unfolded his legs, feeling purified, at least in mind. Now, _now_ he would focus on the momentous task before him. Locate the rangers, reestablish communication, get them back.

He would not stop until he achieved this goal.

Cam quickly went back to work on his computer, accessing new methods to widen his search. Calm as he was, and as smart as he was, and knowing that he needed desperately to stay calm, he couldn't help but feel the slightest tinge of worry in the back of his mind.

Whatever might have happened to them...to his _friends_…he hoped they weren't hurt.

He didn't know what he would do if they got hurt.

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Endnote:

I don't wish to cheapen the words, but I would like to sincerely thank lemonlovely, Rogue Ranger, and newcomer JasonLeeScottFan for taking the time to review my story. I always, always, always appreciate the feedback you guys give to me. Always.

…you guys are right of course, Dustin/Shane I can see, Dustin/Cam I can see, the issue then, is Shane/Cam. Maybe I'll do a triangle. Or maybe I'll rise to the challenge…eh, I'll wait till later to figure that one out. I'll go wherever inspiration takes me.

…I honestly don't think Shane would shout "Power of air" before using his powers, but _I _really wanted him to, so I put it in. So there.

Until next time.


	7. Under the Sea

Chapter 7

Under the Sea

I don't own The Little Mermaid, the musical

Takes place during Return of Thunder part 2

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There was this one time when Dustin was little, like, really little, where his sister decided to pull a prank on him. Probably to get back at him for being the youngest, because when you're the youngest you can pretty much get away with murder and the oldest just ends up getting the blame. So it made sense that his sister in her wiser, older ways, decided to get back at him. It wasn't like it was hard. Dustin was, and always had been, a very trusting person. He couldn't help it, he just didn't think people had bad intentions when they talked to him. Probably because _he_ never had any mean intentions for anyone else, so why would they? The whole idea just escaped him.

Anyway, his sister, being fed up with whatever he had done (he couldn't remember, he just hoped it was good) decided to use one of those trick cameras on him. A trick camera (as the name would imply) was a camera that's not a camera. It _lookeds_ like a camera, it _felt _ like a camera, but when you go to push the button to make it take a picture it just shocked you.

It was a weird feeling, like a quick burn with a…like, _ting_ after…taste.

It buzzed, that's what it did.

When you pushed the button down it buzzed you, making you drop the not-camera to the floor and allowing your sibling to point and laugh at you, at least until you went to your mom to tattle. Because being buzzed was not fun.

Now an attack by a Thunder Ranger was about five hundred…_thousand_ times worse than an attack by a trick camera. See, you could drop the camera, all you had to do was let go of the button and the buzzing stops. _You're_ in control of that. What you _can't _control are Blake and Hunter because they seemed pretty set on making everyone else's lives miserable.

Blake's thunder attack is also a lot worse because not only could he use it to light Dustin's body on fire, or at least make it feel like it was on fire, he could also sling Dustin around with it like it was a lasso and he was a cow or horse being herded into a bullpen in the sky.

…it was the evil plant jive all over again, except this _hurt_ so much more.

The worst part was that he had brought it on himself.

It had been two against one, him and Tori against Blake while the two red guys duked it out over by the rocks (not that _they_ weren't by rocks, but Shane and Hunter were much closer to like, a _pile_/wall thing of rocks), and he had to go and shoot ninja beams at Blake and get them deflected at Tori. Then it was just he and the blue guy who seemed just the teensiest bit upset that they were attacking him and his brother and had every intention of taking out his anger on little old Dustin.

And he had gotten ice cream today.

There should be a rule; no attacks on ice cream day, for ice cream day must be fully appreciated.

The first ten seconds had been the worst of it, as soon as the lightening wrapped around his torso it surged through his body and made everything and by everything he actually meant _everything_ (not just most of him), burn so badly he didn't think he would be able to stand it. If he had been able to scream he would have, but his breath was trapped in his throat and he was barely able to gasp in enough to fill his lungs. It was enough for him to stay awake, but he couldn't do much else. His body twitched on its own, his hands, legs…even his freakin toes were spasming on their own. He didn't even feel when Blake let him go, hurling his body far into the ocean, crashing him into the salt water.

There was a moment of panic were Dustin wondered if his helmet was sea-proof.

When the waves crashed over his head, water pulling him under, he realized that yes, it was.

That was a relief.

Then that itty-bitty wave of panic that exploded into a full blown panic attack when the yellow ranger realized that he couldn't move his body at all, and he was still sinking. He tried…he _tried_ so hard, harder than anything else he had ever done. Harder than when he was trying to nail the cliffhanger; harder than when he had tried to move through the earth back when the academy was still an academy, harder than when he had studied for that biology test, or when he tried to think of what to get Shane for his birthday last year, or…he just…_tried_…so hard to make his body move, to do anything.

A toe wiggle would have been nice…an elbow moving, anything!

_Move!_

_Move body, do something…do **anything**, just… **move**._

_Please._

He couldn't even _feel_ his body, after the burning sensation wore off everything had just poofed away into thin air like magic. It was like he was sitting in the audience of a movie theatre and on the screen was his life just rolling by but no matter how much he yelled or threw popcorn he couldn't _change_ anything.

He could only watch.

He could only watch as the light that was reflecting off of the surface of the ocean got farther and farther away as he sank deeper and deeper and deeper.

…he had never been…how stupid it seems now because they really had been risking their lives but…he had never been…_afraid_ of anything before. Even when Blake and Hunter were going at them the first time…it hadn't really been scary. It had been rough and frustrating, but there never had been any fear. Sure; there had been plenty of things to be afraid of, but with Shane and Tori and Cam and even Sensei there had been nothing to be afraid of because someone always had his back.

Now was the first time…the first time since becoming rangers…that Dustin felt truly alone.

It frightened him.

Shouldn't there be sand?

All beaches had sand, even if the water was too murky to see it there was always sand underneath it. Where's the sand?

…of course there's sand, he just can't see it because he's stuck facing up. That's it, he would just sink until he hit the sand and then eventually his body would get back to normal and he would swim back and help the others or Tori would bring him back or…

But he didn't stop sinking. He didn't see any sand. It was just this…void. Everything, except the sunlight that kept shrinking up above him was just black…nothingness. He was a insignificant yellow speck and he was going to be eaten by a black hole and no one's going to know and…

Was he going to die here?

_That_ scared him. The thought that he was just going to keep falling and falling and falling until….

He didn't want to die. Not like this, he hadn't _done_ anything. They hadn't saved the world yet…he didn't…he wanted somebody to care, and not like best friend care, but like, like-like care about him, at least once in his life. Like-like, like adding another word on the front super sized it or something. Made it special. It could be worse… it could be…_**revenge of the like, like: the sequel, like-part two (this time it means it)**_. If that was all it took maybe he should go around calling himself Dustin-Dustin, then maybe some of the girls at school would look at him long enough to let him ask them on a date.

Heck, to get _anyone_ to notice him like that would be a step up…_like_-like that.

…he was being stupid. Of course he wouldn't die here; he was going to be fine. Just fine. He just had to wait until he got his body working all hunky dory and he could get back and help the others and he and Shane would have a big laugh over his like-like jokes and everything would be good. And well too (that's what Cam always says). The tech would be so proud of him, using words right and stuff.

That is…if Dustin doesn't get eaten by a shark first…or anything for that matter. It didn't look like there was anything near him, not even some seaweed, just more water…this had to be a magic island they got stuck on, and if that was magic what else…

His finger twitched.

…

…his finger twitched!

He felt it move, he _made_ it move, and even though it hurt like nobody's business he was back in action. That's right, first one finger, then his pinky toe, then his knee, his hip, his forearm; he would soon take over all of them! He had motion, baby!

Slowly but surely he got his other fingers to flop and shift sporadically, and as circulation returned to his bigger appendages he managed to convince them to go were _he_ wanted to go and not just wherever they felt like going because he was in charge of his destiny and no one was going to tell him otherwise.

_This _guy is a winner.

He kicked shakily, his legs feeling like they had been replaced by ten pound weights that liked to set themselves on fire every eight seconds. Blake must have convinced them to join their side.

_Stupid legs._

Ignoring the pain, Dustin thrust his arms out in front of him and dragged them back, and soon he was doing a very weak and very floppy breaststroke to the surface. The swim up felt about three times as long as his fall down, and even though the water was _freezing_ he's sweating up a storm underneath his helmet, gasping for air. He's totally in control by the time he broke the surface of the water, and he floundered around for a moment just being happy he's alive and caught his breath. He doesn't succeed on the second part but beggars can't be choosers.

Dustin started to doggie paddle towards the shore, watching energy blasts be exchanged from a distance. Did they even notice he was gone? Well, they were a little distracted at the time. Still are. He tried to wave one of his arms to get Tori's attention but then he saw that she has her hands full with Blake still, and lover boy wasn't going easy on her at all. Dustin's going to have to tough this one out.

But he made it this far, he could finish it.

Stroke after stroke he pulled himself closer to the fighting and eventually the stabbing pain in his body dulled down to a mere throb. Throbs he could handle, he could do throbs. You could say he was the king of throbbing, no, the grand champion of throbbing. The gold medalist, if you will. And you will, cuz he's the best and that's all there is to it.

He's finally at the shore, pulling himself over the rocky edge and rolling onto his back when Blake decided it was time to pay attention to him again. Just trying to share the thunder love. He's about 15 feet away and Dustin could swear that he was glaring at him even if he couldn't see his face. The navy ranger brought his hand up, holding it up like he's about to…

_Uhhhh_…if that dumbnut blasted him back into the water he was going to go psycho on his butt.

He did _not_ come this far just to be kicked back down, no sir.

But this time he's not alone, and Shane jetted over and took Blake down from the side, delivering a solid kick that knocked him to the ground, sparring the yellow ranger from his watery fate.

_How do like that, huh? Not so fun when it happens to you now is it?_

Tori's by Dustin's side in an instant, pulling him off of the ground and Shane is there in the next, visibly checking him for injuries.

Hunter must be taking care of Blake then.

_Good riddance._

Dustin's satisfaction is short lived when he saw that Hunter had his blaster out again, having clearly decided to take advantage of the whole them being-in-the-same-place thing. Stupid Hunter and his tactical smartness. Dustin had _just_ gotten off the ground. Now he and the earth were reuniting like there old sweethearts or something.

He said he wanted _anybody, _not _anything_.

If he wanted to be in a relationship with _anything_ it would be his bike.

_No offense island, you're just not my type._

"Hey," he grumbled as he pulled himself off the ground, "I like dirt as much as the next person…"

"Doesn't show from your riding," Blake snarked, stepping forward menacingly.

Alright, that was it. You could shock him, toss him, punch him, kick him, throw him into the ocean to die a watery death, but you could _not_ make fun of his riding. Not while _this_ yellow ranger was still very much alive and very much breathing and very much motivated to kick your stupid evil navy butt.

"You did not just bag on my riding!" He yelled, throwing himself at Blake with absolutely no grace. Grace was for people who _hadn't_ been shocked and thrown into the ocean paralyzed. Right now he only had brute force and barest idea of a plan. But it was a good plan. Then again, he was kind of biased.

If Blake wanted to play around with the power of thunder then _he_ was going to go all power of earth on him and take the navy ranger down rock style. But first he had to separate him from his brother because, let's face it, together they were pretty mean. Dustin had a good idea of how to do that and make them play by _his_ rules. He was due, they had played _their_ way and now it was time to go his way, because that's just how it goes.

It was always good when you could make the battle go on your own terms.

Rushing forward he plowed into the navy ranger and continued right on, using his newly perfected ninja powers to phase both of them through the rocks that stood right behind the two thunder rangers. Blake had no choice but to go slack and let him take control. If he had fought he would have met a very rocky demise.

_Oh_ how the tables were turned.

_Can you follow that Hunter? What? You can't phase through rock because you're not an earth ninja? Well it sucks to be you, doesn't it? Guess Blake's just going to have to settle for being all beat up by himself._

This was a good plan, no, a great plan. See, Hunter would be all shocked, still looking at the rocks and then either Shane or Tori would conk him on the head and come and help Dustin with Blake after they got through to the other side. He didn't even have to tell them because he knew, he really did, that the moment that Hunter was distracted Shane would smack him as hard as he could.

Shane was never fond of Hunter, but something must've happened earlier between them because the red ranger really had it out for him now.

Perhaps it was that comment he made about his blaster.

That had to be it.

Dustin had expected there to be at least ten to fifteen feet of rock that he would have to push them through before they were clear to the other side, so it came as an incredible surprise when stone ended after about three feet, causing Blake to crash down to the floor face first. Because Dustin had such a good hold on the navy ranger (he really didn't want to mess up); he was yanked down as well, tumbling head first into the other's back and flipping over him, landing face up on the hard ground. It had happened so quickly and so suddenly that he had lost his hold on Blake.

So…that really tall pile of rocks actually _hadn't_ been a pile of rocks…it was just a cave whose entrance had been sealed off by a rock slide.

…that left him trapped alone in a cave with a guy who was a lot better off injury-wise, unless he could get a hold of him again and convince him to run into the opposite wall.

Dustin doubted he had enough quirky charm to do that.

Maybe this wasn't the greatest idea.

Before he could even consider what to do next Blake's on top of him looking like he had every intention of finishing what Shane had interrupted earlier. If he thought that the whole lightening lasso thing had been bad, getting blasted point blank was _so_ much worse. The world literally flashed white and his body flailed wildly, his arms smashing hard against the stone floor.

Talk about being burned.

Blake laughed at his short scream, taking a moment to appreciate his work and Dustin tried to focus his energy into shifting into the stone beneath him but the navy ranger kept a hand on him, smart because the yellow ranger knew he didn't have enough energy to move both of them.

Blake crouched down over Dustin and pointed a mocking finger at him, "You know what, I apologize. I should've just "bagged" on your fighting, seeing as how terrible _that_ is."

The laugh that followed filled the yellow ranger's stomach with a sour feeling.

He had no one to blame but himself for this.

Just as he was about to resign himself to being Blake's new favorite punching bag the wall that he had phased them through exploded, pieces of rock flying everywhere. If he could of Dustin would have crossed his fingers for it to be his team. His plan had worked! Even if his end of it didn't go as planned, Hunter was still distracted enough to be taken down and now they could go three on one against Blake.

_Take that Thunder Rangers; you have met your match!_

A lone figure walked in through the smoke, and as it cleared away it revealed Hunter holding his blaster at the ready position.

...Today was just _not_ his day.

"You okay Blake?"

"I'm just fine," his brother drawled, brushing away some stray dirt. He casually strolled back to the entrance (in a way that reminded Dustin of all those cowboys in the old west movies) without bothering to look back at the yellow ranger, clearly not worrying about him being a threat anymore.

There was smug, and then there was Bradley smug.

What happened to Tori and Shane? Where they okay, did Hunter throw them in the ocean to? Were they hurt? Were they…

"Ninja beams!"

Beams of energy followed the combined shouts of his friends, striking Blake and Hunter squarely in the chest and knocking them to the ground. Underneath his helmet Dustin smiled. He knew he could count on his friends, they were just fine. He jumped up and dashed past Hunter and Blake on the ground (fighting his urge to do a _Na-ni-na-ni-boo-boo_) and made his way back towards his friends.

"Dude, you've got to stop getting separated from us," Shane said, clapping him on the back. He laughed and hid a wince, trying not to rub the hit spot because he didn't need Shane and Tori more worried about him then they already were. They got banged up all the time; it was practically a job requirement.

"I can't help it, I just need to be free," he joked, ducking a swipe from Tori while Shane just laughed. See, somebody appreciated his humor.

Their break didn't last long.

"Incoming Kelzaks," Tori informed, pointing to the mob that was storming the beach. They scattered in every direction, leaving no part of the beach un-Kelzaked. Just beyond them Dustin could see…was that the snail guy from earlier?

"Check it, its return of the snail," he exclaimed, marveling at his…its new cape. Was he super snail now? Just add a cape and you've got extra powers? He could see himself now, Super Dustin-Dustin, _behold his dashing cape and stunning good looks, he can save the world and be miraculously handsome at the same time._

…man, if he couldn't even get a cape for Cam, how was he supposed to get one for himself?

...He should probably focus on the problems he had right now.

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Dustin had said it before and he would say it again, Hunter and Blake had issues. Like, real issues. People who go on Oprah and Doctor Phil and all those kinds of shows might _think_ that they've got issues, but they're pudding next to these two guys. They just don't play well with being…normal?

As normal as you could get while being a Power Ranger, at least.

They were smacking _each other_ around now. Well…Hunter was smacking Blake around; it looked like Blake was just taking it, sticking to defense. If he wanted to the navy ranger could have evaded his brother's hits easily and forced him to eat dirt by now; because while Hunter was the strength, Blake was the speed, but the midget just didn't want to play.

It was good to know at least _one_ of them wouldn't betray every team they were on.

Still, at least they were out of their hair for now.

Super Clam was babbling about snow globes now, and sinking…and something else but Dustin had missed it because he was distracted by the brother's fight. Maybe they had had a slight disagreement and were working it out. For all he knew that could be how they dealt with every problem, so who was he to judge? Instead of ditching what worked so well for them in the past they decided to go ahead and duke it out despite the fact that there were wind rangers and Kelzaks and an evil super crab and…was that Choobo?

What was Choobo doing here?

It must be a monster free-for-all, like a battle royal. Dustin had seen that once during a wrestling match, where all the guys just hammered each other with chairs and jumped off high things onto not-so-high things and it was all chaotic.

It was wrestle mania, but with Kelzaks.

Now if only Zurgane showed up it would be a real party.

Dustin was in the middle of knocking yet another Kelzak into the dirt when he was hit by a strange…feeling. It was difficult to describe. Its like when the people at the track tried to convince him to try to do a freestyle move he didn't feel prepared to do, but he wanted to do it to impress them but his guts tells him no, only that's not entirely it…it was physical too. Like there was this nagging feeling he had forgotten something very important but no matter how much he tried to remember it he just couldn't and the feeling got worse…what was it?

The only other time he felt anything remotely like this was during training at Ninja Ops so it had to have something to do with…the earth? Was the island trying to talk to him?

That would be a new thing for Dustin.

He didn't know how it worked for the other two but whenever he was using any of his earth ninja abilities he got this certain kind of…feeling. Like when you hold your hands out in front of you and you just let you wrists go limp and your fingers relax and it feels like all the weight just focuses on the tips of you fingers. Like just as there about to go to sleep, that feeling, that was what he felt whenever he was…one with his element. Right now that feeling was everywhere, flashing through him at random moments with no rhyme or reason or…

A burst of steam exploded out of the island five feet to Dustin's right, startling him into another Kelzak. Before it could react he grabbed it and hurled it into the steam.

If his powers were going crazy, that stuff had to be more than just decorative and Dustin wanted to know what it did. The Kelzak reemerged from the steam, his face covered in this green, slimy grossness that looked worse then any of Cam's experiments. It reeked too, almost as bad as _he_ did after training.

Almost.

Dustin waited to see if the Kelzak had just gotten super enhanced strength or the ability to fly or to shoot lasers out of his eyes, but instead of going back to attacking Dustin it turned and went to attack other Kelzak's, taking out at least three of them before the Evil Snail shot him down.

…woah…the evil island had created evil steam! Or, steam that turned people evil.

The Kelzak had already been evil, so that negative times the negative steam made another super hero in waiting. Wait…if Blake and Hunter got hit with the steam would they be good again? But they were fighting, so…maybe one of them was already good. Which one was it? Or maybe the steam didn't make people good, it just made them fight their friends, so it wouldn't matter if it hit both of them because they would still be fighting the wind rangers…unless they considered Lothor their friend because they had been pretty set on taking down the good rangers before they even got on the island. Of course they could have, or still be under a spell or an evil ninja mind trick (like the jedi mind tricks, only sneakier) so that couldn't be helped…

…the whole thing made Dustin's head hurt.

The easiest thing to do was to make sure that no one got hit with the steam, evil or temporarily evil or whatever. That would fix _that_ problem.

He wasn't worried about Tori. If he was getting weird power surges because the steam kept pushing through the earth then Tori had to be getting the same thing, except it would just be the steam talking to her. She actually had a better idea of what to avoid. It was Shane he was concerned about. He had no way of being able to tell were this toxic stuff was going to be, so it was up to Dustin to watch his back.

Finally, he got to be doing something more useful then getting beat up.

The yellow ranger jumped away from the action, getting on top of a large boulder so that he could get a better feel for where the next pocket of steam would come out. He closed his eyes for as long as he dared to and focused on the tingling feeling…his heart beat calmly as he waited for some kind of disturbance, a little….there! He snapped his eyes open and looked to his left where down the beach Shane was fighting one on one with Toxi-snob. He had about ten seconds, maybe, before the steam burst through. He wouldn't make it in time, and because their coms where down he wouldn't be able to tell Shane to get out of there in time which meant...

It was time to go fishing.

Reaching behind his back he pulled out his handy dandy weighted rope and began to swing it in a big slow circle, steadily speeding it up. To be honest he had no idea were this thing came from. Seriously. It was there when he wanted it, he knew that much, but all the other times it was just gone.

He would have to ask Cam about it when he got home.

Five seconds. He sped up the rope and let it fly and it soared through the air and wrapped around the red rangers arm, just as he pulled it up to attack a Kelzak. Three seconds. Dustin looped the rope over his arm a couple times and pulled, forcing Shane to stumble backwards just as the steam erupted out of the ground.

"You gotta avoid that stuff Shane!" he yelled, racing towards the red ranger. His friend nodded in understanding and thanks, pulling the rope off of his arm and dropping it to the ground with a thud.

"Gotcha, now lets finish these guys."

Now _that _was an idea Dustin could get behind.

Shane went right back to fighting the giant caped snail, this time keeping an eye on the ground. At least he knew to keep an eye out now and Dustin could focus on taking down some foot soldiers. They were on him as soon as he and Shane parted, but he was more than ready to let out a little stress. These guys were good exercise and…

He got the feeling again, though this time it was further down the beach. Dustin looked up to the exact spot he knew it was going to pour out and saw Hunter standing over Blake. He wasn't hitting him or yelling at him, he was just standing there looking at him all tense and…

The steam was going to go off soon. Should he let them get hit?

No, he already knew what it was like to do something against your will; and he wouldn't wish it on anybody, even Blake and Hunter (as mean as they were). Dustin reached back behind his back to get his rope only to grab at…nothing. He looked behind him at the spot it would normally be to see that it was missing. Wildly he looked across the beach only to realize that he had forgotten to pick it up after he had left Shane.

It looked like he was going to have to do this the old fashioned way.

Dustin raced across the sand, ignoring the warning shouts from Tori who knew the steam was about to come up. If he was fast enough it wouldn't matter. By the feel of it, the steam was going to miss Blake entirely, so he only had Hunter to worry about. All he had to do is tackle him out of the way and everything would be peachy keen.

Hunter would be so thankful he might only hit him _softly _when it was over. He doubted it, but a guy can dream.

The hammer was dropping, he could feel the steam building and building and waiting to explode, but he was almost there, he just had to focus, he was almost there, he just had a few more steps and…

There! Dustin leapt over a rock that was blocking his path, hands up ready to get Hunter out of the way.

And then the world around them erupted in white hot steam, and he discovered he was too late.

For both of them.

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Dun-Dun-_Dunnnnn-_

End note:

To Rogue Ranger and lemonlovely, you have my continuous thanks for your support. I am much obliged to you. Your reviews make me smile…and dance, just a little.

Now, I know, I know, there wasn't a lot of Shane/Dustin in this one but this is building up to some good stuff. Eventually.

Also, I'm going out of town for a bit which is why I hurried to post this chapter up, that's also why it's one of the shorter ones. So…sorry. I just didn't want to leave you hanging when I knew I could give you something.

I was watching the Return of Thunder episodes and as soon as Blake did that lasso thing with his lightening around Dustin I was all like "it would be super cool if he threw him into the water", and then he did! I have no idea why I wanted to write about it so badly but I was going to make it happen whether it was scripted or not.

And I have poor Dustin getting knocked around a ton during this chapter and that's not because he's an incapable fighter, not even kind of, that's just how it turned out. He's my underdog of the rangers. I tried to make up for it by having him save Shane and try and save Hunter.

Until next time.


	8. Alive

Chapter 8

Alive

I don't own Jekyll and Hyde the Musical.

Takes place during Return of Thunder part 2

EDIT: The second part is from Dustin's POV

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* * *

It had been a difficult lesson for him to learn but eventually Shane had come out of the stage in his childhood where he thought everything in the world was fair. Good things didn't always happen to good people and bad things didn't always happen to bad people. It wasn't an equal exchange thing. Sometimes good things happened to bad people no matter how rotten and evil and no good they were and sometimes bad things happened to good people no matter how benevolent and kind they were, that was simply the way the world worked.

There wasn't anything nice about it, but there it was.

When he was younger he had conditioned himself into apathy about those kinds of things, they happened, they were out of his control, and he made himself move on with life after they occurred. Despite all this he found it incredibly difficult to simply accept that Dustin had gotten a full blast of that toxic steam when all he had been trying to do was help Hunter (even though he didn't deserve it) and move on.

There were a lot of things Shane was beginning to think Hunter didn't deserve.

It had gone…badly from there.

Hunter was out for blood (not Dustin's, thank goodness) and he wasn't going to stop until he finished Blake, speaking of whom, had snapped out of whatever mind warp they had been under and realized that the Wind Ranger's were his friends.

So _there_ was a plus.

And then there was this gigantic minus whenever Dustin had finally recovered. The yellow ranger was after Blake too. Shane had no idea why, but he was pretty sure it had something to do with Choobo egging Hunter on about how Blake betrayed him. The steam made him bloodthirsty and Blake was just an easy target for his rage.

Or he was the closest; Shane wasn't to sure which it was.

Tori had been trying to maintain the peace as best she could; keeping the two infected rangers away from Blake, but when she took a moment to focus on Hunter Dustin maneuvered around her and went to attack the navy ranger, who, having been repeatedly attacked by Hunter was worn down enough to only have one move left and wasn't shy to use it. This was the second time today Dustin had gotten blasted point blank with lightening.

Shane had the sinking feeling that it might not be the yellow ranger's last.

Because the red ranger had had his hands full with Super Toxipod Shane could only watch as his best friend fell to the ground and stopped moving. He wasn't sure what happened after that. He remembered Tori moving toward him, dragging Blake with her and then a flash of smoke before she shoved him into action, making them retreat to somewhere else. It was…kind of a daze. He remembered that _he_ should be the one moving them, that _he_ should be leading, but for some odd reason he couldn't.

They could have run for miles, but all Shane could think about was Dustin on the ground, not moving.

And how it was entirely his fault.

-:-:-:-:-:-

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-:-:-:-:-:-

"Blake!"

It was blurry.

Well…when he had opened his eyes it had been blurry, but that had been too hard to keep doing so he had closed them again.

_Now _it was black.

But it _had_ been blurry.

"Where are you Blake?"

Why was it blurry?

…or, why had it _been_ blurry?

"Blake!"

And loud?

_...He_ wasn't loud. _He_ was being very quiet.

It was someone else who was being loud.

_How rude._

"Blake!"

Who was shouting?

…and why couldn't they be more original?

"Blake!"

He would hit them. He needed to hit them.

He had been sleeping.

…had he been sleeping?

"Blake!"

That had to the reason he was on the ground right? And why he couldn't remember anything.

"Where are you?"

That was it.

"Blake!" the voice called again.

_Stop._

_Shouting._

"Blake!"

If he didn't hear you the first time he's not nearby.

…Or maybe he's just ignoring you shouting man, how does that feel?

…Lousy, being ignored feels lousy.

_Stupid Blake._

What right does he have to ignore the shouting person? Shouting person has rights, shouting person has needs.

"Blake!"

He _needs_ to be listened to.

"Blake!"

Well, if Blake wouldn't listen, he would.

And then he'd kill him.

…_huh_

What a weird thought.

"Where are you Blake?"

Where are you Blake? Are you dead? You can't be dead, he hasn't killed you yet. You can't die until he gets you.

Those are the rules.

"Over….here."

Some rocks moved around him, small ones, showering down =from above. There was shuffling, movement, someone jumping down from high rocks. He didn't bother moving. He was tired.

Why was he tired?

…oh, that's right. Shouting man.

_Thank you shouting man._

"Blake!"

The shout was closer.

"…here," he breathed out, barely audible.

Why was he so tired?

The feet came to a stop a couple feet away, he knew this by listening. That was the way he _had_ to know because the island wasn't talking. The earth refused to say anything. It was snubbing him.

Well, two can play that game.

The feet came closer, edging around him in a circle, as though he were a threat.

_Ah yes, you have found me out shouting man. I was about to do my super secret sleep attack but your expert maneuvering has rendered it useless. Curses, foiled again._

"You're not Blake."

Shouting man was mad that he had lied.

Should he apologize?

No, he's going to listen to Shouting man, that'll make him happy.

"You're one of them," shouting man growled.

Did he have his sword out?

…too tired to look. Shouting man will put it up when he realized they're friends.

"Where's Blake?" the growl came again.

The sword's at his throat. Shouting man was still angry.

Well, he's angry to.

…what's he angry about?

"Your friends took him," Shouting man stated, pressing slightly on the sword.

He wasn't worried, there wasn't any point.

It's not like he could move.

"I don't have any friends."

What kind of friends would let him fall asleep on rocks?

"You had friends before."

So they ditched him?

He'll kill them.

…there it was again.

What a funny thought.

"You're my friend."

Shouting man should know he's on his side. He wouldn't have bothered talking to him otherwise.

"We're not friends!"

Shouting man wasn't happy with that one. He's over him now, standing above him and the swords closer.

How did he have so much energy?

He would kill to have that energy.

…kill.

Weird.

"I didn't… hurt you."

So stop being mad.

Shouting man paused for a moment, and then Yellow felt the sword being pulled away from his throat.

Good, he liked his throat how it was, thank you.

"…Where's Blake?"

He's calmer now, now he's just asking.

A question between friends.

"I don't…know."

They're silent for a minute, one focusing on listening and the other one lost.

Really, they're both lost.

"I have to find Blake," Shouting man finally mumbled, putting his sword away. He's upset. For some odd reason, yellow felt like he was like that all the time.

A strange feeling to get from someone you don't even know.

"I know."

About the Blake thing, not the Shouting Man thing. He's been shouting about the Blake thing for a while now.

"No, you…"

"I know."

He did.

"…I'll help you," yellow offered. He wanted to help.

…actually, what he really wanted was to hurt Blake…and his "friends".

They weren't good friends.

Shouting man laughed at that, "You can't help."

"Says…you," Yellow spat out, struggling to turn his head to face Shouting Man. It's a challenge, but he managed it. He argued with himself for a split second before he decided it was time to open his eyes. He should at least see his new friend. His only friend, his other "friends" were dead to him.

…It's hard, worse than turning his head was, but somehow he forced his eyelids open.

He immediately regretted this decision.

"Ah…_ah_," he moaned, squeezing his eyes back shut as the light blinded every fiber of his being. Something grabed either side of his helmet, and if it weren't for all the pain he would be concerned with how close Shouting Man was getting.

They're friends; but they're not _friends-_friends.

…whatever that means.

"What's wrong?" Shouting Man asked, pleasantly not shouting.

Yellow appreciated this.

"…s'bright," He whispered, wishing it would all go away. All the light, all the brightness, it just needed to go away so he could bask himself in the beautiful, beautiful darkness.

The darkness didn't hurt you, not like the light did.

His stomach churned at the thought.

Did his stomach know something that he didn't know?

"What's wrong with you?" Shouting Man asked, hand resting on yellow's throat. A friendly gesture, no harmful feeling involved at all.

_Progress_.

"…tired," yellow choked out. Talking is getting harder. Everything is getting harder.

Well…not _everything._

He could still think.

Shouting Man snorted and repositioned himself on the ground, "No wonder your friends left you."

"They're not my friends."

Whoever _they_ are.

"You sure?"

Yes

And then, because it's really bugging him, "Why do you think they're my friends?"

It's a legitimate question.

Shouting Man paused for a second to think.

"…you were helping them."

That would make sense, if they were friends.

"Where they helping me?"

Another pause.

"I don't think so," Shouting Man answered.

So they were using him.

That figured.

"See," he reasoned, point made. "Not my friends."

"Then why did you help them?"

…Why _did_ he help them?

"I don't remember."

He didn't. He didn't even remember what his "friends" looked like.

He just wanted to hurt them.

_Good luck with that guy who can't move._

"…I'll help _you_," he offered again, wishing he could move. Offers of help seemed to be a lot better when you could actually _do_ something.

Even if it was just blowing bubbles, it would still be better then this.

Shouting Man snorts, "You can't even move."

Yellow was aware of this.

"I can listen."

With the best of them.

Shouting Man remained unimpressed. "What good can that do?"

Everybody needs an ear.

Even shouting people.

"Blake didn't listen."

There's a tense pause and yellow could hear Shouting Man claw at the rocks beside them.

Struck a sore point.

"You don't know anything about Blake," he spat out.

Yellow knew enough.

"I know he's not your friend. If he… was your friend….he'd…listen."

Shouting Man didn't say anything.

"I can listen," Yellow offered again.

Shouting Man let go of the rocks.

"I have to kill Blake," he muttered, chucking one into the ocean. The plop came sooner than yellow had expected.

He hadn't known it was so close.

"…okay," he whispered, agreeing with Shouting man.

Shouting Man twists back to look at him, setting his hand on the ground close to Yellow's arm, "Okay?"

"I'll help."

Shouting Man laughed at this, "You can't even move."

"I'll help," Yellow insisted, and there is yet another pause where Shouting man was thinking.

He needed to get faster on the upkeep. If they kept pausing like this Yellow's might forget what they were talking about. Kind of like he forgot what happened before.

"Why?"

_Because you're my friend._

"You're my friend."

"…I'm not your friend," Shouting Man muttered, turning away again.

Well, if he wants to be difficult…

"…fine…I'm _your_ friend."

Blatant pause where Shouting Man tried to fight the Yellow's awesomess.

Good luck with that.

"I don't need you," he insisted, throwing another rock into the ocean.

"No one _needs_ me…I tag along…for the ride."

Yellow stopped and gasped for breath, struggling to get what he needs. Shouting Man's there in an instant, one hand on his chest while the other one steadies his helmet.

"How can I help?"

_You're not supposed to; it's supposed to be the other way around._

…_I thought you didn't like me_.

"…have any…batteries?"

Yellow gasped for breath again, not at all sorry to waste his energy on a joke. That's what friends do. He thinks…he's not sure.

Some "friends" just abandoned you.

"…I might," Shouting Man muttered, and Yellow's too confused wondering what he meant by that to notice that Shouting man is wrapping his arm around him and pulling him against his right side.

Shouting Man was tall. Tall enough so that their helmets didn't bump into each other oddly. Yellow's not sure how he felt about this, but he's too tired to question him.

He'll save his energy for later.

Shouting Man grabbed Yellow's outside hand and pressed it to his chest, spreading out his fingers. The other's hand lay gently on top of it.

"Give me a few minutes," Shouting Man murmured, and since Yellow has nothing but time he let it go, collapsing against Shouting Man.

The hand on his chest starts to tingle. Not a pain tingle, just…a tingle-tingle.

Could Shouting man recharge people?

…That's kind of awesome.

_This, _is a good friend.

"I have to kill Blake," Shouting man doesn't shout as he grabbed Yellow's other hand.

The tingling started there too.

After a few minutes Yellow's breathing came so easy that he decided it was okay to ask the question that's been bugging him.

"Why?"

Besides the ignoring and the abandoning.

He didn't even realize at first that his eyes were open until their helmets touch, and suddenly Shouting Man's looking at him hard, and he doesn't have the strength yet to pull away. He's not sure if he wanted to anyway. He only had one friend. Personal bubbles could be ignored for them.

Probably.

"He betrayed me," The other stated, and Yellow could feel the glare through his helmet.

He didn't take it personally; Shouting Man wasn't really glaring at him.

If it helped any, Yellow didn't like Blake either. He's not sure why.

Speaking of…

"Why?" he repeated, not satisfied.

It's not his fault, nobodies every really satisfied, that's why there was all-you-can-eat buffets out there.

People always wanted more.

"Why, what?" Shouting Man asked, turning to look away again.

He's trying to be all standoffish and cool.

He's also succeeding.

"Why did… he betray you?"

Was it all the shouting? A good pair of ear plugs could fix that.

Not really a long term problem.

"I don't know," Shouting man grumbled, squeezing Yellow's fingers. The tingling slowly moved up his arms, making its way to his elbow.

He's like the Duracell rabbit, but red…and for people.

"Who was he?"

And by this Yellow meant, why did he matter so much?

Maybe he was Shouting Man's stock broker and he had done a really bad job.

Yellow could kill a stock broker.

…_hum_

These thoughts no longer bothered him.

…Should they bother him?

"My brother," Shouting man answered, snapping Yellow out of his thoughts. Crimson ran his thumb along the palm of Yellow's inside hand.

The electricity climbed up to his forearm.

"I'm sorry," Yellow muttered, and he was.

He's never had a brother, but if he did, and he liked him and he was betrayed by him, he'd be hurt.

And angry.

He'd be lots and lots of angry.

The hand on his chest pressed down harder, and this tiny little explosion goes off, blossoming throughout Yellow's body. His heart beat harder. The light, everything, seemed brighter, but it didn't hurt this time.

He felt…alive.

Breathing's easy cake now.

Had he been dead before?

Not probable.

"Did you make him betray me?" His new friend asked. Not seriously, not really a question, just asking.

_If I did would I tell you._

Or maybe he wouldn't.

But Yellow couldn't remember if he did, so he goes with what he believes is the honest answer.

"No."

He could move his fingers now. He almost thought it wouldn't happen again.

He squeezed Shouting Man's hand just because he could.

"Then don't apologize."

He had the right to apologize if he wanted to, if he even _thought_ he wanted to he had the right…because he said so.

_So there._

"Still…"

It sucked.

"Shut up," Shouting Man commanded, and Yellow shut up.

The tingling stopped.

He told himself it doesn't hurt. Nothing really hurt anymore.

Shouting man exhales slowly and the tingling started back up again.

"Your friend lured him over."

An apology that's not really an apology.

Cool.

"Not my friend."

Or friends.

Whatever.

"Fine, your ex-friend," Shouting Man said and the tingling turns into a light buzzing and it's everywhere, like pixie dust covering his body.

Yellow flexed his toes.

Everything's going to be okay.

He wondered what his "friends" where like. He doesn't bother wondering why that…bothers him. It simply does.

"What did they look like?"

There were at least two.

"What?"

Shouting Man's staring at him, this time in disbelief.

Well, Yellow _was_ pretty unbelievable.

"My friends."

_So you say._

Shouting Man took a moment to think about this before spitting out," One's red, one's aqua."

How helpful.

"Which one lured him?"

It didn't really matter, but Yellow wanted to know which one Shouting Man hated more. Then again, he's assuming that the other one didn't do something else that was just incredibly awful.

Like…killing his mom, or something.

Or dad, this could easily go all Princess Bride-like.

"The aqua one."

Was that one a girl?

…it could just be a boy who got ripped off. Think about it, there could be a guy running around wearing periwinkle. Now _that_ would be the raw end of the deal.

"What are they like?"

Because that hasn't been answered yet.

"I didn't stop to give them a personality test," Shouting Man drawled sarcastically, rolling his eyes. Yellow couldn't see it, but he knew it happened.

Crimson's tone was a dead give away.

"Seriously," he pressed, looking up at Shouting Man.

Unfortunately the other could see his puppy dog eyes.

Or maybe he could, because after a pause he humors him anyway.

"Red's a jerk, aqua's a team breaker."

Team breaker? Like a home wreaker?

…that's funny.

But…

"Which one's worse?"

Because it's important to know which one he should hate more. With his faulty memory and everything he needed to know who to beat down harder. Perhaps he would treat them equally. You know, equal amounts of hate.

…that didn't feel right.

He could bend his elbows and his knees now.

"They both are," Shouting Man replied, appearing to all the world to be disinterested in their conversation.

He tried to hide it but couldn't quite cover up his amusement at Yellow's stretching.

He hadn't thought of that, but cuteness is charming.

Cuteness.

That doesn't sound like a word he would use.

"They can't both be worse."

It's statistically impossible, seeing how worse is…you know, _worse._ They could maybe be the worst of their colors, but that wasn't the question.

"As it so happens, they can," Shouting man commented and let go of Yellow's right hand so he could stretch that one to.

Crimson kept his hand on Yellow's chest though, allowing the energy to keep on flowing.

Yellow doesn't mind, the rush is…a rush.

It's exciting.

Like…like…

He couldn't think of anything.

…_nuts._

"Gun to your head…"

Or Blaster, it's your choice.

"If the aqua one hadn't stolen Blake I'd pick the red guy."

So the red guy had killed his parents?

That's harsh…figuratively, of course.

So what was the real reason?

"Why?"

_Did he use you to?_

"He seemed like an unlikable kind of guy."

Did he have a sign on his head that said so? Maybe a big flashing arrow?

...What does he know; he can't even remember the guy.

But the red guy sucks.

"So we should get him second?"

After Blake, there's no question that he should be first. New-friend seemed set on that.

Shouting Man pulled back to get a better look at him.

"What _we_?" He asked, like he's against the idea, like he's still a loner.

_News flash Shouting Man, you're committed to the yellow._

"We-we, you and me we." Yellow responded, pointing back and forth between them.

Most people were visual learners.

Shouting Man looked away from him, _again_. "There is no _we_."

There's plenty of we, there's so much we that they were practically one person, attached at the hip, best buddies forever…another example of how much we-ness there was in this relationship.

There would be no going it alone.

"I'm your friend."

Shouting man needed to be reminded. And Yellow thought _he_ was slow.

His crimson friend begged to differ. "No, you're not. After this we're done," he leaned away, trying to get as much space between them as possible, "….I shouldn't even be wasting my time here, Blake's getting away."

Actions were louder than words.

"I can help."

Shouting Man's words meant nothing.

He wouldn't have helped Yellow if he didn't _kind_ of care.

"You got blasted in the face, I saw it happen." He's only touching Yellow's left shoulder now, like he was contaminated or something.

Or something.

"I did?"

Was that why he couldn't move before?

"By Blake."

He knew he didn't like that guy.

Yellow turned to face Shouting Man, "I need to get Blake."

And then he would get his "friends".

Blake would be a warm up, an appetizer.

"No," Shouting Man started, letting go of his shoulder and the buzzing stopped. Yellow wasn't tired anymore. He was normal.

The other continued, "_I_ need to get Blake." He began to stand up, "you stay here."

Yellow followed his lead. He wasn't very good at following directions.

"And do what?" he asked.

He was no good here.

"Take up knitting."

Back to the sarcasm.

Shouting Man looked back and forth between the coast and the jungle before deciding on the jungle. He began to climb the rocks.

Yellow followed.

"I can help," he insisted, trying to get used to his new burst of energy.

His legs felt wiggly.

Not _bad_, just wiggly.

"Yeah," the other called over his shoulder, "by staying out of the way."

_Oh no, he didn't._

Yellow didn't remember much about…anything, but he wasn't going to take that kind of business.

Not this time.

"I can help!" he shouted, bounding up and grabbing Shouting Man's shoulder, spinning him around, "I'm going after them whether you like it or not so we might as well work together!"

There, he laid it out for him.

…the churning in his stomach was back.

Stupid stomach.

Shouting Man stared at him hard for minute before he finally asked, "Why?"

…that one threw Yellow for a bit because honestly…

Honestly, he didn't know.

"What?"

Shouting Man took a step forward, pushing Yellow's hand off of his shoulder

"You asked questions and now it's my turn, why do you need to get them so bad?"

He took another step, invading Yellow's personal space. He was too busy trying to find out _why_ that he didn't notice.

_Trust your gut._

Unfortunately his gut seems just as confused as he was.

_Why?_

"I don't know," he eventually answered.

Shouting Man leaned forward, "If you don't know then how you can be sure you have to attack them?"

That one he does know, from what little he's gathered.

"They left me!" He exploded, turning away from Shouting Man, "They left me here all alone."

Like he was dead.

Like he was worthless.

"I couldn't do anything," he finished, quieter, mostly to himself.

He had a feeling Shouting Man heard him anyway.

His friend slowly walked beside him, allowing their shoulders to touch as they stared at the ocean.

Shouting Man was all for the dramatic pauses, and he treated himself to another one before answering, "Okay."

Always with the pausing.

"Okay?" Yellow echoed, looking at him.

Shouting man nodded.

Yellow felt…happy.

It was nice.

"We get Blake first, and then we get your," Shouting Man caught himself before he finished, "…the others."

Not his friends.

"Okay," Yellow agreed, pumping his fist. Because no decision is complete without a fist pump.

It's how they do it in the movies.

Probably.

"Good," Shouting Man said and turned around, walking back into the jungle and not bothering to motion for Yellow to follow him.

He knew it was going to happen.

They continue on in silence for a while before the quiet gets to Yellow. He's not sure why but he needed…he needed _something_, noise, music, birds chirping anything.

Right now, there's nothing.

…He could fix that.

"Hey," he called to Shouting Man, knocking some stray branches out of his way.

Shouting Man leapt over some rocks before he responded, "What?"

Yellow hadn't actually expected a response.

…now he has to think of something.

_Oh, I know…_

"What color's your brother?"

Just making conversation.

By now however, Shouting Man was used to his…train of thought, or liked him enough to just go with the flow.

Whatever the reason, he answered.

"Navy."

_Navy_

There was something about that…

"Ha!" he laughed, stopping momentarily.

Shouting Man picked up on his halt and turned around, "What?"

He was frustrated.

Well _that's _never good.

Yellow could make him smile.

Turn that frown upside down.

"They're purple."

Because that's what red and blue makes.

Shouting Man's body says that he's confused. Good thing Yellow's here to spell it out for him.

"So?"

Crimson continued moving, motioning for Yellow to do the same.

"So, how scary can purple people be?"

Barney's purple, and the only kind of scary he is, is _"love-you-too-much"_ stalker scary. Or, "_if-you-don't-clean-your-room-I-will-frown"_ kind of scary, which ultimately wasn't that scary.

Freaky maybe, but not scary.

…okay, maybe if you were five. _Then _the cuddly purple Dinosaur would be scary.

"…They're not actually purple," Shouting Man reminded him, blowing off the conversation.

But he _did _have something here.

"Fi…figat…figuratively, that's it."

No fear.

"…Whatever," Shouting Man stated, ending their conversation.

It was unfortunate because that meant everything got quiet again. Yellow was all for hunting down the bad guys and destroying them or maiming them or whatever, but at least they could keep the trip entertaining.

Some guys had needs, you know.

He attempted to express his needs by staring really, really hard at the back of Shouting Man's head.

The back of Shouting Man's head remained unimpressed.

…Yellow would not be discouraged so easily.

"Hey," he started again.

This time Shouting Man didn't bother looking back at him.

"What?" The other growled, cutting down some vines with his staff.

Yellow couldn't help but feel that his bad mood was being misdirected at him and the environment instead of who it should be really aimed at.

And that would be Blake.

At least he had a good question this time.

"What's your name?"

Because he couldn't call him "Shouting Man" out loud. He might take offense.

"What?"

_Enough with the echo questions, you heard me the first time._

And calling him "best friend" would only work if they were both in first grade.

They were not.

…probably.

"I don't know your name."

Shouting Man finally stops and turns to look at him, propping himself against his staff.

"How can you not know my name?"

It felt like _somebody_ thought they were a little more important than they actually were.

_It's not like you're famous dude._

…dude

That's a weird word.

"If it makes you feel any better," he began, motioning lazily with his hand. "I don't know my name either."

Shouting Man stared at him for a full minute before hitting the side of his helmet with his spare hand.

"Seriously?"

_Seriously_

"Do you know it?" Yellow asked, because that would be awesome.

Unless his name was…like…Dennis or….Sheldon. He didn't feel like he was one of those.

"Your name?"

_No, my hair color_

"Or yours," he supplied, "either works for me."

Just let him be on the up-and-up.

Shouting Man put his staff back on to his back before answering, "It's Hunter."

Like, a deer hunter?

"My name's Hunter?"

He could get used to that. It's snappy.

Shouting Man smacked the side of his head again, "No, _my_ name's Hunter."

…Hunter.

He kinda liked it. Much better than "Shouting Man".

"Oh…what's…" he began but Hunter knew where he was going.

"I think the red guy said it was Dustin."

Yellow…Dustin, stopped for a minute to think about that.

Dustin, Dustin, Dustin.

_Not bad._

Still…

"Bummer."

The way Hunter titled his head showed that he was hesitant about asking his next question, but he did it anyway, "…why?"

Of course he asked anyway, because Dustin was awesome.

No question about that.

"Well," he started, moving so that he could walk beside Hunter. "I thought I was more of a Phillip."

Phillip, what a cool name.

Hunter shook his head and continued walking through the jungle, "…whatever."

He chose to ignore the fact that Dustin was still beside him. Because that's what friends do. That, and they kill their old friends together.

Wasn't that grand?

…It was grand all right.

Dustin allowed Hunter to shout for his brother a few times before the need to talk overcame him once more.

"Hey," he said, all the while keeping a lookout for their "friends".

Hunter blew him off for about ten seconds before giving in.

"What?" he snapped.

Dustin couldn't fight the smile that spread over his face.

Time flies when you're having fun.

* * *

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Endnotes:

Alright, first and foremost I would like to thank lemon lovely, Rogue Ranger, and Mathais for your kind words, they are the highlight of my writing.

Now, onto the chapter.

Dustin and Hunter…I know in the series after Hunter got blasted with that toxic steam he was stumbling around and yelling and kind of crazy but I decided to go a different approach. I think that the steam is going to affect them in two stages, stage one will go after their minds, for example they want to hurt their friends, and stage two will affect their bodies, making them lunge and contort and do all that weird stuff they did in the series.

Honestly…this chapter came out a lot differently then I intended. I was going to have Dustin and Hunter fight and then reluctantly agree to work together, but I started typing and ended up with this and I rolled with it.

I mean no offense to people named Dennis or Sheldon, that's just the first two names that came to mind.

Until next time.


	9. Waiting for the Light to Shine

Chapter 9

Waiting for the Light to Shine

I don't own Big River.

Takes place during Return of Thunder part 3

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If Tori ever had to pick a home away from home (as unlikely as that was to come up in a conversation), there was no doubt that she would pick the ocean. Even before she was designated as a water ninja it always felt…safe, relaxing. The fresh air blowing over the waves, the crispness of it, the smell, it always made her feel joy. She had a lot of good memories happen at the beach. As soon as her parents said she was old enough, she took up surfing. She had spent so many days baking in the sun, soaking up the water, swimming, running, simply exerting herself in a place that was distinctly her own.

There was no question that she loved the beach.

A lot of people were unnerved by the vastness of the ocean; at least, that's what Tori had come to believe. That when they stood at the very edge were the water stopped rising and they glanced all along the shoreline they realized just how small they were in the grand scheme of things.

Like a speck of sand in a desert.

Tori had never felt that way. Yes, the ocean was huge (it did cover 71% of the earth), but that wasn't a reason to fear it. It was only water.

If you asked her older sister she would go on and on about how pools were better, cleaner, and _"above all else,"_ she would say, _"you could actually see the bottom"_. People feared the unknown, but what did they really have to fear with the ocean? It's not like giant whales and squids were just hovering underneath the surface of every square foot of water waiting to attack, or evil crab colonies that are anticipating the arrival of the next unsuspecting victim or something like that. Horror movies were to blame for _that_ particular idea.

In short, the ocean was nothing to fear. It was exciting with it's waves; it was powerful with it's storms, and it was comforting with its gentle lapping against the sand, leaving just a little remnant of itself in the earth. When it was not meddled with, the ocean was kind.

Tori had always thought it was lucky that she had water as her element because it was everywhere; and as long as she was near a beach she had a constant source of strength, ready and willing to lend itself to her. Sadly the smells and sounds that generally brought her comfort, the presence that she turned to when she needed to ground herself brought nothing for her today.

Not now, not after what had happened.

She wouldn't (it was so hard) let it show, but she was still shaken up after watching Dustin collapse after the lightening strike. Looking at it logically; they were a team, they worked together, and when one of them was down the other two couldn't help but be affected. But looking at it as Tori…it hurt to know she couldn't protect her friend.

A little part of her hurt thinking about what had happened to Blake.

She pushed that back. She didn't have time to deal with that now, Shane needed her.

He was hurting more, he hadn't said anything since they grabbed Blake and ran for it, (her more or less dragging him) but she knew that anything she might be feeling _he_ would be experiencing tenfold. He was the leader, he was in charge of the team and if any of them weren't safe he would feel directly responsible. Because the affected member was Dustin those feelings of guilt would be pretty much multiplied by a million because Shane had unofficially declared himself the yellow ranger's private protector from the entire world and anybody who dared mess with him would feel his unrestrained and all powerful wrath.

On most days this was satisfying, and sometimes entertaining to watch. Unfortunately, _this_ wasn't most days and now the person who had let Dustin down was Shane himself.

Her inner critic was nothing compared to Shane's self induced parade of guilt.

What's worse, a physical wound, or a mental one? Which one take's longer to heal?

They had to get Dustin back, soon.

There was a cave up ahead; near the beach, fifteen feet from the jungle, a perfect place to regroup and rest before heading back into the fray. She pointed it out and Shane nodded in acceptance, following her into it. Mechanically, he laid Blake down on the ground, taking time to do it gently. While she was thankful for this; it surprised her, seeing as Blake was the one who hit Dustin before going down himself from an equally, if not stronger attack from his brother.

_Blake…_

Tori snapped her eyes away from his inert body and peeked back outside the cave, searching the shore to see if they had been followed. She hadn't heard anything while they were traveling, and when they had last left Hunter he seemed incredibly satisfied with simply yelling at nothing, but it never hurt to be sure.

She wasn't called the reliable one for nothing.

The aqua ranger gave it half a minute before she decided it was clear and ducked back into the cave. Shane was staring at the wall; mind somewhere else, absently tugging on his tunic sleeve with his right hand. It was a nervous habit he had picked up from Dustin; he probably didn't even know he did it. She would have to tell the yellow ranger about that when they got him back.

Not if, if wasn't even on the table as an option. They were going to get him back; that was a promise.

With everything in order as best it could be she allowed herself the comfort of kneeling down next to Blake, watching his chest go up and down slowly. He would bounce back, he was a ranger, he had to bounce back. They needed all the help they could get. That was the only reason she was worried.

Movement from Shane; something, she didn't see what it was, took her eyes back to her friend just in time to see him turn and start walking towards the mouth of the cave. She sprang to her feet just as he stopped at the front, turning to look at her. He had an idea, and based on everything that had happened, and the fact that this was _Shane_, it was going to be a very stupid one.

Boys.

He stared at her hard for a moment, still tugging on his sleeve before he decided to share his "plan" with her, if it could be called that. Odds were, he didn't even have one, he would probably just wing it.

Sensei had said something about that once, how emotional responses could compromise the decision making process. Unfortunately, he said, the trend was that they always made them _worse_.

"Stay here," he ordered. "I'm going back for Dustin."

See, no plan, no explanation, just _"I'm going to look for Dustin."_

_You might not like it Shane, but odds are Dustin hasn't gone anywhere in the last ten minutes, in fact, out of the three of us he would be the easiest to locate. Finding Dustin isn't an issue._

The issue was the fog, steam, whatever, that had driven him temporarily insane. _That_ was the real problem here. Even if they found the yellow ranger and brought him back to their new hide-out without Hunter noticing, when he woke up he would still want to attack them.

_More like he would want to attack Blake._

She fought back a shudder and focused on the first of her many problems.

Step one, talk some sense into Shane. After that she would worry about everything else.

"And what do you hope to accomplish by yourself?" She began, walking until she was beside the red ranger and crossing her arms over her chest, sense-talking position assumed. "We couldn't take on Hunter when we were together, what good can you do alone?"

Because odds were Hunter was still slinking around Dustin, and he was looking for a fight with anyone, not just Blake.

"And secondly, Dustin's still under the affects of that steam, what do you plan to do about that?"

_Do you have some magic steam fixe- upper that you haven't shared with the rest of the class_?

"I'll try to snap him out of it," Shane responded, glowering at her.

Well, if he wanted to glower, so could she. She wasn't going to lose two teammates in one afternoon.

"How," she asked, reaching out to grab his arm, "by talking to him? He's still going to be out for blood."

Because right now (as much as she hated thinking it) Dustin wasn't their friend anymore, right now he was something else and Shane was still acting like Dustin was still…Dustin.

It was a hard line to draw.

"I can't just give up on him!" He shouted, knocking her hand off his shoulder. The teenage girl in her would describe the look in his eyes as anguish, and to be honest the look he was giving wasn't too far off. His body tensed, and despite the fact he was glaring at _her_ she knew that his anger was directed at himself.

It's a wound that healed slowly.

"We're not going to give up on him!" She shouted back; matching his volume, distracting him from his thoughts, at least that's what she intended. She tried to emphasize the _"we"._

He didn't have to go through this alone.

She reached forward and grabbed the front of his tunic with both of her hands staring him straight in the eyes, "But we're not going to rush into things without thinking about it just to ease your guilty conscious."

There was a second of tense silence where he glared at her in challenge, as if (and it wouldn't surprise her because he was ridiculously stubborn) he was going to deny it, and then the second passed and the anger in his eyes turned to sadness, and he slumped against the wall, the fight having left him. Tori let go of his tunic and took a step back to evaluate the situation.

Step one, complete.

Step two, regroup the team and get them battle ready.

Now as much as she hated it there was nothing she could do for Blake, they would just have to wait and see, but she _could_ help Shane. Comfort, calm, ground. She would be Shane's ocean.

He ran his hands through his hair, staring absently outside the cave before he began the blame game, "I should have stopped him."

"How?" She asked, trying to help him work around his guilt.

_You're not Superman Shane._

He looked back at her, tugging again on his sleeve. "I should've-"

She cut him off before he got too far.

"Looked into the future?" he opened his mouth to interrupt her but she continued, "Because aside from that there was no way you could've known what was going to happen."

She had felt the steam seeping through the cracks in the island and _she_ didn't even know it was going to happen, it was a wonder that Dustin had figured it out at all. The yellow ranger would deny it but out of the three of them he was probably the most attune to his element. Only in Power Ranger world could an accomplishment like that backfire so miraculously. Cam would get a laugh out of it later.

She wondered how much longer it would take to get to _"later"._

The look Shane gave her let her know she was getting through to him, that he didn't necessarily like it, but he understood. It wasn't his fault.

He sighed again, rubbing the side of his head dejectedly. "I just…" he trailed off. It wasn't like he needed to finish anyway; Tori knew where he was heading. She reached forward and hugged him, smiling when he wrapped his arms around her.

"I know," She whispered, rubbing his back. The blue ranger relaxed into it and he squeezed her back, finally aware that he wasn't the only one who was hurting.

Now if only…

"Glad to see…you missed me."

It was almost too good to be true. Tori let go Shane and whipped back around, looking down to see yes, Blake was awake. To add to this, he seemed to have kept his sanity since his last bout with consciousness. Thank goodness for small blessings.

Step two complete.

She kneeled down beside him once more, Shane mirroring her on Blake's other side and together they helped the spent navy ranger sit up and began informing him of what had happened. Shane tensed at the mention of Dustin's injury but aside from that he seemed back to his normal self, ready to get back into action.

It was time for step three, make a plan and get their friends back.

They would do it with flying colors.

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"Blake…"

Sound's from…Hunter.

In front.

Soft.

Not him, not…Dustin.

Dustin was quiet.

_**Kill**_

There's…dirt.

They're in dirt.

They're dirty.

He pulls… forward.

Not bad guy…"dirty"… in-dirt dirty.

_**Blake.**_

_Why…in-dirt dirty?_

Reach with left arm.

They're crawling.

…_Why?_

Pull forward.

Dirty from…crawling.

_Okay._

Why?

…_Tired._

_**Kill.**_

…who?

Who kill…?

_**Blake**_.

_Okay._

Reach with right arm.

Pull.

"Blake…"

Who?

…Hunter…in front.

Still…shouting.

Stubborn.

They're crawling.

…Why?

**_Kill_.**

_Why_?

Reach with left arm.

Pull.

_Tired._

…Wait.

Something…something…

Tickled his mind…

Blake's not…bad.

…Right?

He's…frie-

_**Blake.**_

Why?

What…happened?

_It hurts_.

"Blake betrayed you."

Voice from front.

Not…Hunter

New voice.

What?

"The Ranger's are your enemies."

Who's talking?

Familiar.

…Choobo?

Isn't he…bad?

"Blake betrayed you."

Betrayed…us?

…that was wrong.

_Tired._

So…tired.

Blake's good.

Not…dirty.

_They,_ were dirty.

Dirt…dirt…dirt…

"The Ranger's are your enemies."

Shane…enemy?

No…

Not Shane.

Not…Tori.

They're…friends.

Friends.

Choobo.

…Choobo's bad.

Dirty.

_Tired._

Need…fight Choobo.

Fight…

_**Kill.**_

Choobo.

_**Blake.**_

Get.

_**Kill.**_

Up.

_**Blake.**_

Shut.

_**Kill.**_

Up.

_**Blake.**_

…_tired._

Why?

"Blake…"

Not bad…Hunter.

_Talk…talk…**talk**_

…what?

Tell him.

…doesn't know.

He doesn't…remem-

Feels…tingle…

What?

_Move_

It's…

_No_

Building…

_No..._

Bursting…

_No…_

Where?

_**No!**_

Steam flooded everywhere; covering them, surrounding them, attacking them from their positions on the ground, completely blocking out the world around them. There was a brief calm before it all went bad again that Dustin realized what had happened, how the steam had made him…attack his friends…again and…then his body started getting all fuzzy and heavy and Hunter's did too and they were crawling and it was all coming back and…

And now it was all going away.

He didn't want to go back to that place.

But like many things in life, he didn't get a choice in the matter. The last thing he heard before he went under was Choobo's maniacal laughter.

…

_**Kill**_

Okay

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The plan they ended up with was a lot like his original plan, to simply hunt down their missing teammates and try to snap them out of whatever fog the toxic steam had put them into. If that didn't work they would just wait it out, sparring and trying not to get anybody hurt until Dustin and Hunter were back to normal. It wasn't the greatest plan, and Cam could probably come up with at least 12 better ones, but given their time restraints (sinking island and everything, something that Blake had happily informed them about) it was the best they could come up with.

If only they knew more about this freaking steam.

Shane was tempted to, but restrained himself from asking Tori about it. She might be a water ninja but if she had learned anything about this stuff she would have shared it by now and there was no need to make her feel bad. He wasn't the only one with a guilty conscience. Tori had gotten hit on both sides, by Blake and by Dustin, and she had managed to hold it together long enough to pull him out of his pity party.

When they got back to civilization he would have to get her something.

Not a frog though, she probably wouldn't like that.

A scarf, maybe. Girls like scarves, right?

Shane didn't know who to ask to see if that was right. He could just use Dustin's approach and ask Cam; that seemed to work for him.

He missed Dustin.

_Stop it,_ Shane thought, _focus on getting him back_

Now was not the time to be distracted.

New plan did have a leg up on the old plan in one way though, it allowed them to all be together, and it would be a lot easier to distract Hunter with more than one person. They hadn't discussed who would be doing what because it wasn't necessary. They all knew Shane was going after Dustin and Blake was going to deal with Hunter. Let _him_ get beat up for a change.

They had been walking, not streaking (in spite of his insistence and how much he hated it) for hours, going back along the coastline to where their original battle had taken place. They wanted to be able to hear Hunter before they saw him so that the two blue rangers could get in position to intercept him. When they started fighting Shane was allowed (Tori had said so) to run as fast as he could to catch up to Dustin, but when he found him he was _not_ allowed (also decreed by Tori) to touch him, even if he was still unconscious where they had left him. Shane was to maintain his distance until the yellow ranger either A-woke up, or B-the others came. Based on past experience with Hunter, it would probably be option A. Shane wasn't worried though, not for himself.

These evil things; the beams, the steam, all seemed to have a time limit, so even if he couldn't get Dustin to break out of it he would come back.

It would just take time.

Shane had never thought he was a terribly impatient person, but this particular mission was really starting to test his tolerance.

It was beginning to test a lot of things, actually.

They had begun climbing down a hill of rocks when an explosion was set off in front of them, throwing them all in different directions. Shane rolled back onto his feet, searching out Tori and Blake to see if they were all right. Blake was still in the middle of the outcrop, further back, and Tori had been blown higher on the incline. Shane was on the beach. Seeing that both of them were okay he turned to see what the source of the attack was. He stared into the fog, looking hard for signs of movement. It was too quiet to be Hunter so that left-

The fog cleared away revealing Super Toxipod (again), walking towards them without a care in the world. Shane would never get used to the egos that some of these guys had. It was amazing really. The wind rangers had actually won _all_ their fights and they weren't cocky. What had this guy done? Oh, that's right, he'd been defeated.

Maybe it was the cape.

Toxipod…Super Toxipod (whatever) hadn't so much as snuck up on them as he had appeared out of nowhere, and he was taking advantage of this as much as he could, rushing towards them to attack before they had a chance to morph.

_Yeah buddy, I don't think so._

They transformed quickly and entered a ninja shadow battle, giving him a taste of his own medicine. Shane had gotten out his Hawk blaster and was about to finish off this slug so they could get on with their lives when an unmistakable call rang out down the beach, much closer than he would of liked. The red ranger cursed himself internally; in their haste to deal with Toxipod he had stopped paying attention to his surroundings (mostly because he had distracted himself with getting revenge on the meta-snail for the stupid toxic steam). Now Hunter was much closer, stumbling towards them yelling for Blake, which wasn't all that surprising.

It was what came next that caught Shane off guard.

For trailing after Hunter; stumbling and waving his ninja sword was Dustin, lurching forward wildly and doing his best to keep up with the Thunder Ranger. He was eerily silent; the only sound he emitted was an odd gasp for air, his breathing labored.

Was he hurt? Why wasn't he breathing right? Why didn't he say anything? Why-?

Shane was so shocked by the sight of his friend he failed to notice Toxipod getting back into the fight, swinging at him and only a call from Tori gave him enough heads up to duck in time and roll out of the way. By the time Shane was upright again the aqua ranger had stepped in to keep Toxipod occupied, only glancing at the red ranger once to see if he was okay. Shane nodded back numbly and looked back down the beach, startled to see that Hunter and Dustin had sped up to a charge, weapons at ready. He shared a quick look with Tori to make sure she would be alright alone (she would be, no doubt about it) before taking off to meet Dustin, following behind Blake who had taken a head start to get to his brother.

It was time to get their friends back.

The thunder's were already locked in combat by the time he reached Dustin; whose first blow almost knocked him off his feet. Shane recovered just in time though, jumping back to evade instead of falling to the ground. He cast his eyes over to Blake to see that he hadn't been so lucky. Any attempts Shane might have made to help were cut off by another slash from Dustin, pushing him further down the beach and away from his team.

Okay, Shane could take a hint. He needed to focus solely on Dustin; Blake would have to deal with Hunter on his own.

They all had their battles cut out for them.

Dustin lunged forward again wildly; trying to stab him in the stomach, but Shane ducked underneath him, using his momentum to toss the brainwashed ranger over his back. He turned back around in time to see Dustin exit his roll recovery and swipe at him again, aiming for his throat. The ground; while usually being the worst place to be in a fight became Shane's only option and he dropped down onto his back, rolling away just as Dustin brought his leg down in a stomp. Shane kicked out his legs, hitting the yellow ranger's leg and knocking him off balance, earning him a few seconds of respite.

Plan, plan, what was the plan? So far he had been stuck on the defensive but it looked like he was going to wear out long before Dustin was. The yellow ranger was still keeping up his silence, gasping and growling but saying nothing. It bothered him. Dustin was a chatterbox, constantly talking about something, and the contrast between his normal self and _this_ was so drastic it shook Shane to the core.

It was like he was a completely different person.

Shane never thought he would see the day where Hunter talked more than Dustin.

The red ranger dodged another barrage of attacks, darting back away from the other's blade. He didn't want to _hit_ Dustin, that would be counterproductive, but he couldn't keep this up. Waiting the toxic steam out was slowly dissolving as an option.

Well, if Dustin didn't want to talk then _fine_, but that didn't mean that _Shane _had to stay silent. He would snap the yellow ranger out of this one way or another.

"Dustin," he gasped out between hits, "its Shane."

He didn't know how much Dustin remembered (if anything) but he figured throwing his name out couldn't hurt. Shane suspected it would either slow him down a little; or he would just keep going at the same pace he had set, so the red ranger was surprised when his comment resulted in Dustin attacking him with even more ferocity, throwing one attack after another with alarming speed.

All he had said were three words. He wondered what a full sentence would earn him.

"Shane," he emphasized, stumbling over some rocks and nearly getting his head whacked off, "your friend."

"No," Dustin growled, finally breaking his silence. He knocked Shane's sword aside and swung at him with his fist blindly, losing some of the finesse he had earlier.

Because Shane calling him a friend made him mad.

The red ranger grabbed Dustin's hand to hold him in place; he was finally getting somewhere, "Yes I-" he started, but Dustin was by no means done.

"You're not my friend!" He shouted, wrenching out of Shane's grip and stumbling back a few feet, glaring at the red ranger when he reached a halt. Everything about Dustin's body language told him that the yellow ranger truly meant what he said, that he believed it whole heartedly. Shane ignored the feeling of hurt that flashed through his body.

This wasn't about him.

Shane pressed forward while the other was still willing to talk, "I don't know what Hunter told you-"

When Dustin cut him off this time it wasn't with what he expected. He should know by now, evil or not, Dustin rarely did what was expected of him.

"He said you were my friend," the yellow ranger responded in a gravely voice, arms slack at his sides as he stared Shane down, "but I know better."

Hunter had…defended him? Him, or them, or what? They had talked, that was for certain.

Shane didn't know why that bothered him so much.

He tried to piece together the puzzle in his mind. So…Blake's attack hadn't been as bad as they thought, and Dustin had recovered quickly and discovered Hunter who had probably been wandering around nearby and then they, being two blood thirsty guys, they sat down to have a chat? It made no sense to Shane, but again, it was unimportant.

He shook his head to refocus himself. "Why?" he asked, keeping his tone calm, "Why can't I be your friend?"

He took a tentative step forward as he did so, slowly, keeping his posture relaxed.

It almost felt like he was approaching a rabid animal.

_Stop that, _he thought, _underneath the steam, it's still Dustin_

He wondered how much of this the yellow ranger would remember later.

Dustin tensed but kept his sword at his side, watching him carefully. "You left me. Why did you leave me?"

Shane choked on air, his guilt trip from earlier coming back full force.

That…that hurt. Leaving him had…it had been a stupid plan, he knew, _knew_ he should have stayed, or gotten him or-

But that wasn't the worst part. The worst part was that his best friend thought he had abandoned him on purpose. Shane could deny it as much as he wanted, but in all honesty…they had.

How could he make it up to him?

Another small step forward pushed Dustin back another step, "We had to get Blake-"

"See!" the other shouted; pointing at him insistently, "You want him more than…"

"_You want him more than me" _Shane finished in his mind.

"That's not it!" The red ranger shouted, forgetting to be calming. "We-"

"No!" Dustin yelled, tired of listening to him. He swung at Shane wildly and missed him completely, which was good because the hurt and anger that permeated Dustin's voice had frozen Shane in place. He recovered in time to grab at Dustin's sword arm, pulling him towards him.

The red ranger tried to explain, "I was coming back…"

He had wanted to come back.

"Liar!" Dustin yelled, catching Shane in the face with his elbow. "You left me, you left me for Blake!" He yanked himself out of the red ranger's grasp, swinging around to attack him once more.

If Shane hadn't been so panicked he would have been struck by the…ridiculousness of this situation. Because him picking _anybody_ over Dustin just seemed so completely ludicrous he couldn't even begin to describe it. He couldn't explain this away, _that_ wasn't working, so it was back to saying names, "Dustin!"

"No," Dustin started, swiping at him again. "I'll kill you!"

This time, Shane had a plan. He ducked under Dustin's blade and knocked the sword out of his hand. Once disarmed, he thrust his arms underneath Dustin's and pulled them up, holding his friend in place. Dustin struggled frantically; trying to kick him, and soon it became a dance of him maintaining his hold and avoid further injuries.

Still, it was better than before.

Dustin stopped kicking after a few minutes, slumping against him. "You're the worst," he snarled, jerking against his clutch, "Hunter said so."

_Forget stupid Hunter_

"I'm your friend," Shane reiterated, making sure the other could hear him.

"Shut up!" Dustin yelled, throwing his legs out, kicking to be let go.

This wasn't working. Shane needed to do something, he couldn't hold on to Dustin forever. He needed…he needed…

"I'm sorry," he murmured, and Dustin finally stilled.

He needed to apologize.

The yellow ranger began to shake his head in disbelief, "…you're not…you're not." He muttered, trying to convince himself he was right.

"I'm sorry," Shane repeated gently.

Because he was.

He was _so_ sorry.

"No…" Dustin repeated, softer this time, more to himself, but Shane could see he was coming around.

Shane slowly dropped his arms and settled them around Dustin's stomach in a hug. Physical assurance he wasn't lying.

"Remember Dustin," he urged. "I…_we're_ your friends."

_And we need you back._

Dustin slumped against him again, but this time it was in exhaustion,"…you…you left…" he trailed off, voice returning to normal.

As much as he hated what had happened Shane couldn't help but smile.

"I know."

He did.

"I'm sorry."

He was.

They stood like that for a minute before Shane remembered that there were other people on the island. He glanced over his shoulder to see that, yes, Tori had been more than fine on her own and had taken care of Toxipod and Blake had either snapped Hunter out of it, or was crushing him to death.

He wasn't too bothered by either option.

"…Shane?" He looked back and felt Dustin turn in his hug, putting his side to the leader's chest. He still remained slumped against him.

"What?" the red ranger asked, barely containing his amusement.

It's weird to think that a few minutes ago he had been miserable.

"Carry me?" Dustin asked pitifully, and if Shane could see through his helmet, there was no doubt that he was giving him the puppy dog eyes.

"Sorry," he replied, shooting him down. In all honesty he was willing to do whatever Dustin wanted at the moment, but he _did_ having a sinking island that he had to worry about.

"…but m'head hurts," the other whined, flopping against him miserably.

...he'd hold him for a few more minutes, but then they had to move on.

Really.

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Endnotes:

Muchas gracias to Rogue Ranger, lemonlovely, and ValkyrieNyght for your wonderful reviews, everything helps and I am always grateful.

So…it was pointed out to me that I was neglecting Tori and…I was, it's true. I thought I was doing an okay job with her (I haven't been ignoring her as much as I could…maybe) but, well, I wasn't. I appreciate you pointing that out to me.

So now we have Tori's p.o.v., I hope I kind of did her justice.

I'll try to keep her involved.

And as for Dustin's little scene/interlude, in the show Hunter was dragging himself along because the toxic steam was poisoning him (I'm assuming), that's why I decided to write that section using a minimal amount of words. Then at the end there's the normal narration where Dustin's coming out of it, and then he's back under its effects.

However, the end of all this drama stuff means fluffy goodness later! I'm excited.

Also, the Thunder Rangers finally get to be good guys.

Until next time.


	10. Vanilla Ice Cream

Chapter 10

Vanilla Ice Cream

I don't own She Loves Me.

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Baths were stupid.

Well, they _were._

Not bathing though. Like, getting clean, Dustin was cool with that. And despite what people might say (not his friends but his classmates at school) he actually promoted it, like a lot. He was pro-cleanliness. Smelling good was never a bad thing in his book. But baths, that was a whole nother' story. Everyone's all like, _"baths are relaxing",_ and _"soaking will make you less sore"_, and they go on and on about how wonderful a giant bowl full of water is, but they fail to tell you the stupid, gigantic negative (more like a hazard, really) of taking a bath.

They are boring.

_Oh_, _so_ boring.

You just sit there and at first it felt good but then you started getting tired (because you're all relaxed) but _then_ you remember that you can't fall asleep because if you fall asleep you'll sink into the water and drown and then it won't matter how relaxed your muscles were because you'll be dead. So really, bathtubs were super villains in disguise.

What were you supposed to do in them, anyway? Dustin had seen people read while bathing in the movies and he had tried giving that a shot with his motocross magazine but all he had managed to do was to completely ruin it within two minutes of getting in the tub, and now he's down a month of current motocross news and every time a customer wanted to talk to him he had to fake it until he got the next issue.

_See_, they're evil.

Who created bathtubs anyway? They obviously didn't have tall people in mind when they went through the design process. Blake might have been fine, but _this_ guy's knees were getting cold and his knees deserved to be relaxed too. And bath's took _forever _to fill up and then if you fill it just the _teensiest _bit over the recommended amount (but they never tell you what that is) it splashed all over the floor, and _that's_ not going to evaporate any time soon so you have to clean it up.

In the end it's a no-win situation, unless you added bubbles, because it's impossible for bubbles to be evil.

Well, except maybe sometimes.

And besides, _some_ people don't have bubbles so-

_Let us recap, shall we?_

So you have to sit (uncomfortably), and you have to stay awake (or suffer the consequences) and the only thing that could possibly be running through your mind is how stupidly boring baths are.

Dustin gave up after six minutes and took a shower, because showers don't try to kill you. The hot water did help though, pounding against his stiff muscles as he reviewed the whole Toxipod island thing in his mind. He didn't remember much of it. Well, he remembered the beginning, when they chased after the Thunder brothers and Blake threw him into the ocean (he shuddered at the thought) and then when he saved Shane from the steam and attempted to save Hunter and then it all kind of got blurry until what he declared "the end" of the mission right before the zord fights.

The gap in his memory wouldn't have bothered him so much if his muscles weren't so _sore_. Seriously, what did he do? Did somewhat have a go at him with his Lion hammer? Worst still, the team hadn't even covered what had happened during the debriefing. They spent _that_ entire time trying to convince Blake and Hunter to join their team. Dustin didn't know why the others were making such a big deal about it, they were rangers, of course they would join the team.

It was simply a matter of time.

It was the Spiderman motto going into full effect,_ "with great power, comes great responsibility."_ They were too good of people to not help out. And, he had gotten them jobs back at Storm Chargers so they kind of owed him. A little, not a lot. They weren't great jobs, but they would still bring in money, so it was better than nothing. He had done that…when? Earlier this afternoon, that was it. It was…Thursday, still. The whole; alternate island dimension thing had flown over his head, but somehow it worked out to what felt like hours, maybe even a day on Toxipod's island translating into one hour of really bad weather back at Blue Bay Harbor. Their parents hadn't even known they had been gone, which was a good thing, but Dustin couldn't help but be bothered by the fact he was a day older than he should be.

It was like a rock he couldn't dig out of the bottom of his shoe.

And there was another thing that was bothering him too.

The fact that Shane hadn't outright told him what had happened while he was "out" gave Dustin the feeling that whatever it had been hadn't been very good. Not like the "evil" part but the, "how your friends feel part".

So instead of letting Shane stew over, _whatever _by himself, Dustin had decided to investigate.

He had cornered his friend after the debrief under the front that he needed help feeding Leonard (which should have tipped off the red ranger because really, how hard was it to put crickets into a tank?) and tried to pry what had happened out of him_._ Dustin did get an answer, but the _way_ his friend told him what happened was what bothered him more than anything else. Dustin had thought that Shane had been avoiding the subject ever since they got back, but he didn't have any solid guesses as to why. He knew Shane would probably be feeling a little guilty because he was the leader and all, but he didn't expect him to…you know, feel _that_ bad about it. It was surprising. Shane told him, reluctantly, about how he went berserk (like that Kelzak) and then how Blake had knocked him out and the team was forced to retreat, and how they eventually found him later following Hunter and ended up fighting Shane.

At first he tried to just…listen to the whole story before thinking about how he felt about things; it was something Cam had said would help out in the long run, and at the end of it, well…he did feel a little hurt for being left behind but he understood why it happened and moved on.

By the looks of it, Shane hadn't. And that just wouldn't do; no sir-ee.

Dustin let him go after that (after assuring that they were cool, even if Shane didn't take it to heart) and decided to sleep on the whole…situation.

He had a feeling Shane hadn't told him everything that had happened.

But who else was left to ask?

Tori, Blake and Hunter. He wished Cam had been able to hook up a secret camera on the island (because the dude had them everywhere, and he was a little afraid to use the bathroom sometimes, not that Cam would watch that, that would be weird, but private stuff was private and yeah you get the point…) but he had glared at him when he had asked.

Blake, Shane had told him, had been unconscious for most of the stuff he missed, and busy with Hunter the rest. That left Tori and Hunter, and if _he_ didn't remember anything, what were the odds that Hunter-

Wait, maybe he did.

_He_ had never asked the crimson ranger if he did, and it wasn't like Hunter was going to volunteer for talking duty. If there was anything the crimson ranger would never do, it was make small talk. Unless he was trying to woo you to find out where your secret ninja base was, but he seemed to leave that stuff to Blake.

That was it, tomorrow after work Dustin would ask Hunter what he remembered, and then work backwards…or like, forwards from there. It wouldn't be hard, just a casual conversation between friends and-

What about Blake?

Dustin hadn't thought of that. He doubted that he would be able to separate the two after what had happened, and Hunter might be trying to put the whole thing behind him Blake probably wouldn't let him talk to him about it so…

_Nuts_.

What he needed was a decoy. Something to distract Blake long enough for him to talk to Hunter. He thought for a few minutes before his face broke out into a grin.

Or, _someone_ to distract.

He smiled bigger.

He would just have to beg Tori (not like she hated talking to blue-dude anyway) to distract Blake for him for like, five minutes. If she resisted he would simply remind her of how wonderfully she trashed his beautiful, glorious, perfectly-tuned racing bike. And when _that_ didn't work he'd give her the puppy eyes and promise to buy her ice cream. She might not like going into Julie's but that didn't mean she hated the merchandise.

He _may_ or may not have bribed her into doing things with it. Maybe, but he's not telling.

So, it was settled then.

His muscles were still a little sore after the shower, so he decided to retreat into his pillow fort for maximum comfiness. There was very little in this world a pillow fort couldn't fix. If talking didn't work he would try it on Shane.

And if _that_ didn't work he would _buy _bubbles dagnabit.

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Lothor seemed to be taking a vacation from attacking on Friday so school and work went by very uneventfully. See, that's the good thing about doing equal damage; the bad guy had to regroup too.

That's balance at work for you.

Dustin had raced through his last bike repair just so that he could be finished at the same time as the Bradley's, and while he might (and by might he meant definitely) have scraped up his hands a little in the process the end result was him finished eight minutes before they were off work, which gave him about three minutes of wash up before he had to run outside to lie in wait for Hunter.

He had planned this out well.

…with a little help from Tori.

As he made his way out he spotted the aqua ranger near the front of the store (who had put on a good show of wanting nothing to do with his plan even if he promised ice cream for a few minutes before giving in). He had had to tell her what he needed to speak to Hunter about (because she's nosy like that); but after that she agreed to it easily, offering to do it for free which, on most days, was something he would've taken her up on but he kind of needed an excuse to get ice cream so he was going to "pay" her anyway.

Crossing through the coat section of the store he gave her a wink (or his best try at a wink since he usually couldn't keep the other eye closed so it just looked like he was squinting oddly, but super secret missions called for winks so he did it anyway) to signal that the plan was in action and awaited her signal to show she understood.

What he _got _was an eye roll which wasn't the return signal they had agreed on beforehand at all.

That wouldn't do.

He slowed down his walk and stared at her, waiting for her to get with the program.

She stared at him back, unwilling to be a team player.

He widened his eyes and stared at her harder.

She shook her head and stared at him back.

He slowed down some more and _glared_ at her.

She was unimpressed and glared at him back.

He was four feet from the door so he slowed down to the point where he was moving in slow motion and continued glaring at her.

For a second she looked like she was going to keep ignoring him before she sighed and flicked her nose with her right index finger.

_Bingo._

Signals properly exchanged (like good super spies) he happily sped back up and waved to her as he exited the door, not seeing any of the weird looks he received for his slow motion demonstration. As soon as the door shut behind him he raced to the far side of Storm Chargers (where Hunter and Blake go to streak home, wherever that was) and ducked around the corner, plastering himself to the wall, being as silent as possible.

And then he remembered he was supposed to be casual about this and un-plastered himself from the wall, deciding instead to lean against it casually, folding his arms across his chest. That's right; he's just a dude leaning against a wall so there's nothing to see here.

No super secret mission in the works so you could just move along.

No, no, you could _mosey_ along.

That sounded way cooler.

He was so in tune with his not-doing-anything character that he almost missed Hunter minus Blake (well done Tori) passing him by completely. Dustin did a double take before he realized what was going on and leapt off the wall, yelling and chasing after Hunter.

So he wasn't good at subtle.

"Hunter! Dude, wait up!" he shouted, waving his arms enthusiastically. If he got lucky Hunter would warm up to his enthusiasm and actually talk to after a few minutes of pleading.

Unfortunately, he hadn't expected Hunter to actually _listen_ to him the first time and was unprepared when the taller teen suddenly stopped and turned around. Despite Dustin's ninja reflexes he had too much momentum going to be able to stop himself in time. In the split second before they collided he couldn't help but think about how he survived the bathtub only to be killed by Hunter.

And it had been such a _good_ plan.

The ground (normally his ally when it wasn't covered in cement) met his face rather abruptly, his arms too busy pin-wheeling to brace himself in time. They did manage, however, to scrape themselves up quite nicely and-

He couldn't help but notice he was the only person on the ground.

Dustin turned onto his back to see that while _he_ hadn't had time to react, Hunter had, and had stepped aside in time to _not _be smashed into and was staring at the mechanic with a questionable look on his face.

Curse him and his super coolness.

Granted, falling on the ground wasn't exactly painless, but it _was_ much better than death.

So the plan could still work.

"Hey," Dustin started cheerfully, waving from his spot on the cement. Maybe if he pretended the fall never happened Hunter would play along with him. This might sound like a joke but it's worked for him before.

Hunter gave him a confused look before asking, "What?"

…_huh_

For some odd reason Dustin got the feeling they that they had this conversation before.

_Weird_.

Dustin quickly sat up and leapt to his feet; he was killing time and he didn't have much to begin with. He considered simply talking faster, but he had a tendency to be not-understandable when he did that so he would just have to settle for talking regular pace, but with purpose. That might help.

He was dawdling, secret agents don't dawdle.

It wasn't their m.o.

"Do you remember what happened?" he asked after a few seconds of boosting his confidence. Hunter blinked and stared at him blankly.

Oh…he needed to be more specific.

Right.

He looked both ways to make sure no one was listening in before he leaned forward and whispered, "On the island."

"You mean after we got blasted with that steam?" Hunter asked, not bothering to lower his voice. Dustin rushed forward and covered his mouth, shushing the crimson ranger before darting his eyes back and forth to check for people again. Hunter responded by shoving his hand away and glaring at him.

After a few moments of letting Hunter cool down (because mad Hunter didn't look like a fun Hunter to have around) Dustin stepped into his personal bubble (all the while still looking for eavesdroppers, even though no one had bothered them so far and it was unlikely they were going to but super spies were thorough) and whispered, "Yeah."

Hunter rolled his eyes, "No, I0" he started again at normal volume and Dustin shushed him again and motioned frantically for him to lower his voice. Hunter sighed and whispered, "No, I don't remember what happened."

Well, that was a bummer.

"Why, do you?" Hunter continued, looking at him intensely.

Dustin felt his eyes widen involuntarily when he realized that the other teen probably wouldn't like the answer, "uh…I was hoping you would."

Hunter looked at him disbelievingly, "Are you serious?"

Was it that unbelievable?

Well, Hunter had been hit by that "mind" beam and _then_ the toxic steam, and Dustin had only gotten the steam so maybe he really was supposed to be the one who remember. He suddenly felt very guilty for false advertising.

"…yes?" He answered timidly.

_Way to go Dustin, can't even remember what toxic fog made you do. _

"Whatever," Hunter growled before pushing past him and continuing on his way.

"Well, are you sure?" Dustin called after him. Hunter was his last option here; having been the only other person he spent time with when he was evil who _wasn't_ Shane.

He needed to have _something_ before he spoke to the red ranger.

Hunter surprised him again by stopping, again, and turning back around, sending him a searching look.

"Is this about your red guy?" He asked bluntly.

Dustin blinked at him, startled. So he hadn't been the only to notice that something bothered Shane. He wondered who else knew.

"Yeah," he answered honestly and Hunter focused on him hard before sighing and motioning him closer. Dustin smiled and eagerly stepped forward, finally getting somewhere with his super-secret plan.

It was about the little victories.

"Look," Hunter started, keeping his voice low, "I don't remember anything, but Blake does."

The yellow ranger nodded, waiting for him to continue.

Hunter sighed again, looking distinctly uncomfortable. "When we were fighting…I said some nasty things, about how he betrayed me and wasn't my brother and was a liar. It didn't bother him because he knew it was a lie, but I'm thinking maybe…maybe you said something that hit home. Something he thought was true."

Dustin's mind reeled. He hadn't thought of that, but it made sense. He said something bad because he was temporarily evil but Shane agreed with him and…what did he say?

"Anyway, it's none of my business," Hunter finished, stepping back before beginning to walk away.

That didn't work for him. Cold shoulder or not, Hunter had helped, voluntarily, and Dustin was going to repay him.

The yellow ranger stepped forward, grabbing the side of his arm.

"Thanks, man. I owe you," he said, before throwing his arms around Hunter in a hug. The other resisted at first, attempting to push him off but Dustin was insistent. Eventually he gave up and hugged him back. It was two birds with one stone, one bird to help Shane, one to make Hunter feel apart of the team.

"Am I interrupting something?" A voice that sounded a lot like Blake's called out from behind Hunter. They broke apart quickly to see Tori and Blake standing at the mouth of the alley, looking incredibly amused.

"No," Hunter growled before turning and stalking off, this time for real. Blake gave a laugh and waved goodbye to Tori, seemingly relaxed and happy, but when he passed Dustin he gave him what could only be described as _"the stink eye"._ The curly-haired teen waved to him apologetically (because how was he supposed to know that hugging was bad?) before bounding over to Tori to share with her his new gained knowledge.

"_Were_ we interrupting something?" She asked before he could get started.

The look on his face should have been enough to tell her the answer but he replied anyway, just to be sure. Girls were weird about these kinds of things.

He had no idea why.

"No, dude. But I did get some interesting information…"

With that he explained what had happened. With Tori's help, he might be able to tackle the whole "Shane" issue.

Go team super spies.

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If they ever changed the title of "Where's Waldo?" (A much hated book of his childhood) to "Where's Shane?" (Much more enjoyable) the difficulty level would go way down to kindergarten level because if Shane wasn't with Dustin, at Storm Chargers, his house, or Ninja Ops (that wouldn't be mentioned in the book of course) there was only one place in the world he would be, and that was the Skate Park. Especially if he was working something out or had a problem. He would just go there and ride for hours. He said that it helped clear is head.

Tori said that he went there to ignore his issues.

Dustin honestly didn't care why he did it, as long as it made him happy. Right now he doubted he would be happy alone.

It was just starting to get dark when he arrived at the park, bag of ice cream goodness in hand. Shane was alone on the ramps, riding back and forth, not doing any tricks. He was either too tired to do them (Dustin couldn't blame him for that) or was too distracted to risk it. Or, it was a fun combination of both. Dustin was betting on that option.

Dustin caught his eye as he descended the ramp again, waving at him dramatically before pointing to a bench that was nearby. Shane (would've nodded in acceptance if he wasn't moving) dismounted on the other side and quickly came to meet him, smiling and high fiving him before he sat down.

"I come bearing gifts dude," Dustin greeted, displaying his goods.

He and Tori had both decided that they needed to "warm" Shane up before they started talking about the heavy stuff. While there may be many ways to do it, this was the tastiest. Also, if the other's hands were occupied he would be less likely to grab his gear and bail.

"What'd you get me?" Shane asked, pulling off his helmet.

He didn't know how the other did it but Shane rarely got helmet hair. It wasn't fair.

Dustin blinked at him innocently, "Vanilla, what did you think?"

"Seriously?"

Dustin managed to keep a poker face for a few seconds before he broke into a grin and dug out Shane's container. "No way man, I got you Rocky Road."

Shane smiled and accepted the offered goodness. "Now _that's_ what I'm talking about." He ripped off the lid and dug in a few bites, humming in approval. Dustin smiled at his enthusiasm and took out his own ice cream, copying the other's actions. Shane eyed him warily.

"What did you get?" He asked between bites.

"Hm? Oh, vanilla."

Shane nodded in understanding, "Ah, of course."

"Hey," Dustin defended, mouth full, "don't rag on the classics."

Them's good eatings.

"Okay," Shane mumbled, holding his spoon up in surrender. "Okay."

They continued eating in silence after that, each enjoying the ice cream. Well, Shane enjoying the ice cream. Dustin _was_ enjoying the ice cream but was still a little nervous about when he should make the serious conversation start.

When they were halfway done, that's when they'd do it.

It was only a few spoonfuls away.

He slowed down a little bit…or a lot a bit; by the way Shane had stopped eating his ice cream just to watch him eat in…slow motion. He looked at him questioningly.

"I'm…savoring it," Dustin finished, trying not to cringe at how dumb that sounded.

Shane shrugged and continued eating, "Okay."

Crisis averted?

No, it was time; he couldn't get cold feet now

He and Tori had decided that the direct approach would be the best, at least, that would be what he and Shane would be the most comfortable with. Dustin slowly lowered his spoon and rested it in the container, taking a deep breath before taking the plunge.

"What did I say?" He asked, focusing solely on Shane. The reaction wasn't immediate; the red clad teen had glanced at him for a second between bites but had to do a double take, seeing the seriousness on the other's face. He put his spoon down too, casually though, and relaxed against the back of the bench.

Dustin guessed there was a short internal struggle going on where Shane was deciding how to answer him. After a few seconds it had passed, and in a relaxed and innocent tone he asked "When?"

_You know when._

But if he wanted to play…coy (That was the word Cam used) that was fine with Dustin, as long as they got to the important stuff.

"On the island." And just so there was no room for interpretation he added, "While I was under the effects of that steam."

Shane frowned at him and rubbed a hand through his hair, looking away from him and into the dark.

Reevaluating the situation.

He finally answered. "Don't worry about it Dustin, you didn't have any control," he looked back at him seriously, "None of that was your fault."

It was so like Shane to think he came here about him. Trying to fix everyone's problems but his own. Dustin should have seen it coming.

Luckily, Shane had set him up nicely.

"And it wasn't yours either," he countered and the skater looked at him in surprise.

He continued while he was on a roll, "Tori told me about what you talked about in the cave." The reaction was immediate; Shane put his helmet back on and grabbed his board, preparing to leave. Dustin didn't know _why_ his friend was being so difficult (a little voice in the back of his head that sounded a lot like Tori said it was "because he's dumb"), but the yellow ranger wasn't letting him get away without this being settled.

That's not what friends did.

He sprang off the bench, knocking his ice cream to the ground as he chased after Shane, ducking around him and taking a hold of his arms to make him stop. "Look, I don't know what I said," he started, begging his friend to listen. "I don't even remember anything that happened and it kind of freaks me out that I lost half a day," he was babbling, _get on track Dustin_. "But you have to know that whatever happened wasn't your fault," he finished, waving his hands drastically for effect.

There was a tense silence were they stared at each other.

After a moment Shane's eyes softened and he slumped in defeat, looking away to the side, and slowly scratching the side of his head.

"…You said," he began slowly, painfully, and Dustin hurt with him even though he didn't know what he was going to say, "we weren't friends." He looked back at him, "because friends don't leave friends behind."

Dustin was stunned.

_Stupid toxic steam. Stupid, stupid toxic steam. If it weren't for that Hunter would have been fine, and I'd be fine and none of this would have happened and they'd all be happy, but that couldn't have happened because…because…_

Then it came to him.

He grabbed Shane's shoulders and looked him square in the eye. "We're rangers, it happens."

So Cam could've come up with better, and Sensei and Tori and even the Thunder's but _they_ weren't the one's doing the talking now so Shane was just going to have to deal. Because as unfair as it was, they _were_ rangers, and some of these things just couldn't be helped.

That wasn't good enough for the red ranger. "That's it," he began, pushing Dustin's hands away, "just, '_we're rangers it…_' "

But Dustin wasn't finished.

"I forgive you," he stated simply.

Shane stopped his ranting immediately and all the guilt he had been pushing away crept onto his face.

Dustin continued, "If that's what you need to hear. I forgive you."

_If you can't forgive yourself, I'll just help you_.

Ultimately though, this wasn't Shane's fault at all.

It was Dustin's.

Dustin looked away this time, off at whatever it was they kept starting at. "I…I'm sorry I got hit by that steam Shane."

The red ranger looked up at him in surprise, and frowned, moving forward and wrapping an arm around his shoulders.

"Hey, that wasn't your fault, you were just-"

"Being a ranger?" Dustin finished.

They looked at each other; Dustin, hopefully, Shane, obviously fighting himself. In the end Shane sighed and wrapped his other arm around Dustin in a loose hug.

"…Fine," he mumbled, sounding vaguely unhappy. Not guilty-unhappy, more like…"you just outsmarted me" unhappy.

Well, it happened sometimes.

"Fine?" Dustin echoed, making sure he heard right. He couldn't completely hide how pleased he was with himself.

"Yeah," Shane sighed again. "Fine."

"…I win?" Dustin added, sounding innocent, but really just rubbing it in.

Hey, he didn't win often, but he was on a roll today.

"Yes," Shane grumbled, flicking the side of his head.

Dustin contained a giggle.

"Good," he smiled, pulling out of the hug, "now stop feeling bad."

He demanded it, no, he decreed it so. And the world would know if the yellow ranger decreed it so then so it must be done or so help them…so.

So was a fun word.

"You make it sound easy," Shane joked, steadily getting back to himself.

"It really is," Dustin assured him, and then he looked around wildly. Eventually he spotted his discarded ice cream melting on the ground.

_You can't always get what you want._

Turning back to Shane who was now looking amused and a little bit apologetic (good, because he had made him spill the food of the gods) he smiled and offered,"…You wanna go bug Tori?"

She really shouldn't be missing out on this fun.

The look he got in return made it worth losing the ice cream, "I thought you'd never ask."

_But if you try sometimes, you just might find, you get what you need_.

* * *

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* * *

Endnotes:

Much love and thanks to ValkyrieNyght, lemonlovely, and Rogue Ranger, anything you guys offer makes my day. Seriously, your suggestions are inspiring.

Unintended Rolling Stones reference at the end, it just happened and I liked it.

Shane decided he needed closure, so I gave it to him, but I couldn't really figure out how to do it _out_ of Dustin's p.o.v. which is why we got so much of him. But hey, he isn't evil anymore, so there's a plus!

For those of you who don't know (I didn't know until last year) "m.o." stands for method of operation.

Until next time.


	11. My Strongest Suit

Chapter 11

My Strongest Suit

I don't own Aida. Fact.

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"I'm telling you, JCPenney's is where it's _at_."

Dustin was very determined to prove this point, so much so that Shane had given up arguing with him about twenty minutes ago.

"I heard you the first time," he reminded, eying his friend with vague amusement.

Dustin waved off his comment and continued talking adamantly.

"_And_ it's named after a girl, how much better can it get?"

If that was a judge on how good a store was, Shane supposed Dustin had a point.

"Not much, I guess," he admitted.

Dustin cheered silently beside him, pumping his fist.

"So we're going there right?"

_I didn't think I had a choice_

"You seem pretty set on it," he answered noncommittally.

"Of course I do," Dustin assured him, "I have mad shopping skills."

"I thought you just bought the first yellow thing you find in a store."

Actually, Shane didn't think this, he _knew_ this. He had witnessed a Dustin Brooks shopping fest before. Despite the lack of concern from his friend it was the fastest he'd ever been clothes shopping.

Dustin scratched the side of his head bashfully. "Well I do, but there's an art to it."

_No, there isn't._

"Doesn't sound like it."

Dustin turned and looked at him seriously. "Dude, I'll prove it to yo." He squinted his eyes, pausing to think before adding, "We'll even take time to 'browse'."

He said that like it was a bad thing.

Eventually, after their talk in the park yesterday Shane had mentioned Tori's (for lack of better word) awesomeness on the island, and how, like they had done for Cam, he wanted to get her something. Dustin was on board immediately, chatting a mile a minute about where they could go, what they could get (he mentioned something about codeword's), he was all for it. While Shane had expected…enthusiasm (that was simply how Dustin was), the red ranger couldn't help but feel there was something he didn't know that Tori had done. Now there was the direct approach to finding this out, and then there was how Shane chose to deal with it.

He only had to stare at Dustin suspiciously for six seconds before the yellow ranger broke down and told him about how Tori had helped him come up with the plan to get Shane out of his funk.

A wave of gratitude rushed through Shane; Tori had really outdone herself, on the island and afterwards.

They had decided to go with Shane's initial idea of a scarf, and were currently traipsing about the mall attempting to pick a store to make the necessary purchase but hadn't been able to settle on one.

Hence Dustin's ramblings.

As it turned out, JCPenney's was _not_ where it was at.

It tried, _oh_, how it tried so hard; but they looked throughout the entire store and could not find _one_ scarf, not a one. So Shane and Dustin decided to go to their backup store (Dustin having insisted they pick one just in case), Dillard's. Sure, it would probably be more expensive (which to be honest Shane wasn't too happy about), but he wasn't going to complain as long as they had what they were looking for.

It shouldn't be this hard to give people money.

The change seemed to be just what they needed because two feet in the door Dustin spotted an area covered in racks of scarves. He grabbed Shane's arm and dragged him over to the mother load of scarfingdom. Honestly, that was the best way to describe it. One or two racks Shane could understand, you needed a little variety, but this, this was ridiculous. He would never understand women's need for multiple accessories, but if it made them happy, who cared.

He stared blankly at the multicolored ornaments, ruling out anything that wasn't blue, or at least, blue-ish and tried to find something that looked reasonable enough for Tori. He cursed himself for not paying more attention to what she wore.

"He-ey!" Dustin burst suddenly, pulling out…a scarf? It looked more like an afghan to Shane…or a tent, it was huge. His friend held it up excitedly, whirling it around like a matador. Shane tried to fight a wince and prepared himself to cut off all scarf twirling if it got too close to something that could be knocked over.

Dustin tended to be…accident prone.

_If there ever was an understatement, that would be it._

Luckily the mechanic got tired of the twirling quickly and settled for a closer examination of the scarf's goings-ons.

"It's like a cape man!" The curly-haired teen declared once he finished his go over, resting the…_thing_ on his shoulders and turning to model it in the mirror. He held the edge up in front of his face like he was Dracula, making dramatic "vampire" (or what he considered to be) faces. He was in the middle of barring his teeth and making hissing noises when a voice interrupted them.

"Excuse me sirs, can I help you?"

Shane turned away from the mirror to see a middle-aged sales woman watching Dustin with a look of professional reserve that didn't quite cover up her amusement.

Well, at least she wasn't mad.

"Actually, we're looking for a gift for a friend of ours," Shane answered, taking advantage of the situation.

Based on the amount of scarves this store had if he and Dustin were left to their own devices (i.e., they would easily distract themselves) they would probably get out some time next Wednesday. And getting another woman to pick out a scarf for Tori would insure that it would be likeable, at least to her.

Ultimately, that was all that mattered.

"She likes blue," Dustin added solemnly, still clutching the edges of his "cape".

"Oh," Dustin added after a moment, "we want a showy one, not a…keep warm one."

The sales woman (her name tag read Shirley) nodded in understanding (impressive for someone who knew virtually no "Dustin speak") and allowed a small smile to spread over her face.

"I think we have just what you're looking for in the back room, I'll go grab them for you."

Before Shane could say anything Dustin replied, "Awesome," and with another nod Shirley was off, zipping away to a place that had even _more_ scarves.

The dark teen gave the scarf section another once over. Maybe these were just the show models or something, and you couldn't actually _buy_ them.

Dustin snapped him from his thoughts, "Back room man; that must be where they keep the good stuff."

Shane rolled his eyes and went back to looking, "I thought _all_ of it was good stuff."

It was Dillard's after all.

Dustin thought about this for a second before replying, "Well _maybe_ it's the shady stuff, like, black market scarves or something."

Shane could only raise an eyebrow in return before motioning to Dustin to continue looking. Sighing, his friend hung the "scarf" back up and starting digging through hangers of sparkling material. There were a few minutes of silence while they dedicated themselves to their task, not effectively, because neither one of them had a solid idea of what Tori would _want_, but they gave it their best try. So…it was frustrating, but in a way a lot of fun, because if you _had_ to go shopping, you might as well do it with your best friend.

Shane should have known it was the calm before the storm.

"Oh, look at this one!"

Shane looked up from his rack to see Dustin admiring a very shiny, very fringy, and for lack of better word, a very gaudy looking scarf.

In other words, it was ugly.

If a gypsy scarf and a circus scarf had a baby and then if _that_ baby got together with a clown scarf that was the descendent of a disco bandana and Vegas showgirl ascot and was dipped in glitter and covered in sequins but was somehow still fuzzy, _that_ would be this scarf. Bold, clashing, and just plain awful.

"It's so shiny," Dustin whispered, holding it up and staring at all its details. So fascinated was he that he missed the look of growing horror that was on the red ranger's face.

Shane knew damage control was needed before things got out of hand. He quickly glanced at his rack again and pulled out a random scarf, a dark turquoise with silky thing and shoved it out to distract Dustin from his discovered treasure.

Maybe it wasn't too late.

Tori would kill him if he paid money for that, but if Dustin got too attached to it he'd whip out the puppy eyes and then if Shane ignored him he'd feel awful, and then he'd have to buy it, and the Tori would have to _wear_ it and-

Goodness would not follow.

"What about this one?" he asked, speaking a little louder than usual. He ignored the questioning looks of a few startled passerby's.

His effort got Dustin to spare his scarf a brief glance before going back to being mesmerized by the world's ugliest scarf. So that answered the question of Dustin's attachment to it.

It looked soft, so if he _did_ end up buying it he could always console Tori with that right?

He had a feeling she would still be mad.

Dustin slowly began to rub the scarf against the side of his face, humming in happiness.

Okay…if distracting him _before_ he fell in love with it wasn't an option, Shane would simply have to find something he would like better.

And that _Tori_ liked better.

He had almost forgot about that.

What would he like…what kind of…oh-

Shane spotted a thinner scarf with no trim, decked out boldly in floral prints of pink, yellow, green, and blue. Maybe he'd appreciate the colors.

"What about this?" he questioned, unfolding it to see the full thing. It was bold, and _not_ terribly bad looking, and…well if Tori didn't like it he would just tell her what she _could_ have gotten. By the time he looked back at Dustin the hideous scarf was around the yellow ranger's neck and he was playing with the fringe happily.

"Dude, check it out!" He exclaimed, motioning to the scarf and the mirror. "If _I,_ can make this look good, Tori will look awesome," he finished excitedly, bouncing slightly in place.

So this hadn't gone the way Shane had hoped it would.

"It's so _fringy_!" Dustin added, twirling the excess material around in a circle.

He wondered how much in the hole this scarf was going to put him.

He needed…something. He needed a miracle, a savior, a distraction, a monster attack (where was Lothor when you needed him?). He needed a-

"What are you guys doing?"

_That _was _not_ what Shane needed at all.

He frantically hoped that the voice had been in his head, and that he was really going insane, but if the wide-eyed look on Dustin's face was any indication the person they wanted to be here the _least_ was standing right behind him.

"What does it look like we're doing?" He asked vaguely, turning and putting his best "_We're doing normal stuff"_ look on.

Tori's face read amusement as she glanced back and forth between them. Shane elbowed Dustin so he would stop staring.

"It _looks_ like you're shopping," she returned, hands on her hips. She only had one shopping bag herself but Shane couldn't see where it was from.

"That's what you generally do in a mall," he responded casually, trying to be as ambiguous as possible.

His smooth talking would be going a lot better if Dustin would stop fidgeting.

What do you do when your friend crashes your buying present party…for _them?_

In the few precious seconds he had he decided it would be best to end the conversation and get out of here.

"And you got sidetracked?" She offered, gesturing to the scarf around Dustin's neck. They both nodded excitedly, accepting her answer.

"Yeah," Dustin proclaimed, a little too enthusiastically, "we got…uh…"

"Sidetracked," Shane finished, throwing an arm over Dustin's shoulder as if to say _"Oh how easily distracted we are, doesn't that make you fond of us"._

Laugh if you will, but girls could read that kind of thing.

Tori seemed happy with that answer, and it looked like everything was going to be okay. They could all just leave and he and Dustin would come back another day, but that idea was trashed as out of seemingly nowhere Shirley reappeared with several scarves in each hand, all of which were blue.

Shane had to fight to not do a face palm.

"Here are a few I think your friend will like, they are some of our best sellers," She chirped cheerfully, undisturbed by the added member to their party. Shane had tried desperately to hate her for her untimely arrival but couldn't because in spite of Dustin's choice of neckwear she remained professional. In a way she almost seemed supportive of his choice without saying a word.

Either salespeople's job requirements were much more arduous then he had previously assumed or this Shirley was a magical one.

"Your friend?" Tori echoed, looking at them questionably.

Shane frantically searched his mind for an explanation; they had never said they _weren't _looking for scarves and-

"Cam!" Dustin shouted out before Shane could say anything.

There was an awkward moment of silence.

Shirley remained cheerful.

"…He said his neck was…cold, and I wanted to… get him a scarf," He finished, almost questionably.

So it didn't really make sense, but Shane decided to roll with it.

"This was the first rack we saw," he added, attempting to make their story sound legit.

He tried to ignore the glaring fact they were in the women's section.

"Do you like this one?" Dustin asked suddenly, gesturing to the ugly scarf around his neck.

_Don't answer. Don't answer. Don't answer. He doesn't really want an answer-_

"You're joking, right?" Tori responded incredulously, raising an eyebrow. Dustin opened his mouth to ask her what she meant by that (because there was no way she couldn't _not_ like his favorite scarf) when Shirley, blessed lady that she was, picked up on what was going on and interrupted him.

"We have a wide selection of men's scarves, if you'll just follow me," she informed them. Shane was surprised to see that she had mysteriously whisked away any trace of the pieces of blue flighty material that she had been holding earlier.

It was settled, she was magic.

Shirley then ushered them away from the women's accessories (they had to pause for a moment so Dustin could say his goodbye to his beloved scarf) and into menswear to get a "proper" scarf for Cam.

Just like Shane, Tori had taken an instant liking to Shirley and walked beside her to ask various questions about what they had in stock and the sales that were going on and other things that no teenage boy in his right mind would care about so Shane started tuning out as soon as possible. He and Dustin trailed behind, finally relaxing after their close call earlier.

"Hey," Dustin whispered to him out of the side of his mouth, still facing forward. "Does this mean we can't get her a scarf anymore?"

"Yeah," Shane replied. "I think that idea's shot."

Dustin was silent for a moment before he asked, "So now what?"

Shane sighed, knowing there was only one answer.

"Now we get _Cam_ a scarf."

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After running and re-running various diagnostic tests over all of the Wind's equipment Cam decided (after much deliberation) that he was having a good week. He almost dared to say it was phenomenal but had declined to do so in order to ensure his weekend would meet the same positive results. The process of relocating the Ranger's when they were on Toxipod's island had opened up several new doors for him to explore virtually, and his thorough inspection of each of these had advanced a great deal of the research he had been stuck on. That, and the specs he had received on the Thunder Ranger's Zords had left him in surprisingly good spirits. He was hopeful to carry his stroke of good fortune into Saturday, if he used his time productively he might (dare he think it) be able to take a day off.

Honestly he wasn't sure what he would do if he had a break, (training would be the most likely option) but the very aspect of time off was appealing.

Cam was well into writing another program for the wind morphers (to allow him to effectively communicate with them no matter their location) when one of the security sensors started chirping. He didn't bother switching his monitor to the camera feeds because he already knew who it was. He just hoped they wouldn't stay long. He liked them, of that there was no question, but he almost had this finished and a distraction was the last thing he needed.

Coffee, coffee was something he needed. And maybe a new mouse, those were things he needed now.

He could get those tomorrow, granted the Wind Rangers were willing it so.

Familiar footsteps echoed down the hall from the main room of Ninja Ops, the Winds customary chatter half-covering it up. The routine however was broken up with an almost-shout protest from Tori followed by the quick thumping steps of Dustin breaking ahead of the group, bursting into the lab and charging at Cam quickly.

He thankfully stopped before he slammed into Cam and stared at him blankly for half a second, staring frantically at the door and scratching his head wildly, clearly indicating to the lab tech that he was trying to think of a plan. For what, Cam didn't want to know. Eventually (by eventually he meant whenever Tori and Shane entered the room) Dustin had determined his course of action and jumped on top of Cam (who hadn't bothered to stand) and threw his arms around him in a hug.

Just as the tech was about to shove him off (he wasn't exactly light) Dustin whispered urgently, "Go along with it."

Then, as though that entire incident had never happened Dustin jumped back up and waved wildly at Shane and Tori, both of whom were watching him with great amusement.

"We have a surprise for you!" Dustin declared suddenly, gesturing to a bag in Tori's hand with enough enthusiasm for Cam to consider it overdramatic (even factoring in the yellow ranger's normal way of conducting himself). Tori, either unaware of Dustin's suspicious behavior or wasn't particularly bothered by it, gave him a fond look before stepping forward and holding the bag (from Dillard's by the printing) out for Cam to accept.

He received the bag cautiously, fighting his natural urge of suspicion in an attempt to "play along" with whatever Dustin had gotten him into.

A visual examination of Shane confirmed that he was "in" on it too, not that Cam had ever thought he wouldn't be.

It was Tori alone who was high and dry.

_This better be a secret worth keeping._

He gingerly opened the bag and reached inside, his hand wrapping around something soft. Instantly he knew it was clothing. If this was their way of telling him they didn't like what he wore he was kicking them out of Ninja Ops and ignoring any other attempts at contact for the rest of the weekend. That included all status reports and Leonard mealtimes. His clothes weren't _that _bad, at least when compared to Dustin. If they were going to do a shopping intervention they needed to hit _him_ first.

Pulling his prize out revealed that his new article of clothing was a winter scarf. Try as he might he could not fathom a reason he could possibly (or that Shane and Dustin could have thought) he'd need it. Sure, last week when the world was slowly freezing over it would have been a legitimate purchase, but that fiasco had passed and he was highly doubtful of a repeat performance.

So the real question was what did the scarf symbolize?

"Ta-Da!" Dustin cheered again, grabbing the scarf from him and wrapping it around his neck, something Cam would have tried harder to protest if he wasn't occupied with Dustin's reasoning behind whatever was transacting here.

"We got you a scarf! Now your neck will never be cold!" Dustin finished, draping his arm over his shoulder and flicking the ends of the scarf in a circle.

_That would be the reason to get a scarf, I suppose._

After a moment of contemplation Cam finally determined a relatively safe reply, "…thank you."

Apparently this was the correct choice, because Shane whooped and Tori smiled wider before coming forward and hugging him.

"These two _tried_ to find it all on their own but they couldn't even find the right section," She supplied cheerfully, resulting in smiles from Shane and Dustin that were a little _too_ wide to not be forced enthusiasm.

Shane patted her back affectionately, trying to play it cool, "In our defense we thought there was only one."

"It was big enough," Dustin added, looking thoughtfully into the distance.

He was picturing it in his mind, Cam just knew it.

Tori rolled her eyes at them, smirking at Cam before informing, "They were in the women's section."

"A scarf's a scarf," Shane submitted casually just as Dustin murmured, "They're so shiny."

Tori, being as wise as she was decided to answer Shane, "No, it really isn't."

Then before he could protest she turned back to Cam, "Luckily I was already at the mall looking for cds. I found them on my way out."

"But you don't have any cd's," Dustin pointed out, looking at her questioningly.

Cam had noticed this as well.

"They didn't have the one's I wanted," she sighed. "It looks like I'll have to order them."

"You'll probably find a better deal anyway," Cam replied tersely. Despite his tone she smiled at him again, knowing full well he didn't mean it.

Enough however, was enough, and Cam wanted to know what exactly was going on. To do this though, he would need to get rid of Tori.

Just as he thought this Dustin, seemingly reading his mind, looked at his watch and burst loudly. "Dude, I gotta go, I have work in like, ten minutes!"

_Cue Tori_.

"Alright, I'll give you a ride," She comforted him, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Goodbye Cam," she finished smiling at him one last time before ushering Dustin to the door.

Cam turned to look hard at Shane, indicating that he had some "s'plaining" to do.

Shane wilted a little under his stare. "You guys go ahead, I'll just…walk home," he finished lamely, and before Tori could question him Dustin pulled her out the door, and by the sound of it, down the hall and out of Ops.

Shane and Cam stared at the door in silence while the tech connected the dots in his head.

"So," he started finally. "You were trying to get a gift for Tori?"

That better be it.

Shane sighed before looking at him sheepishly. "Yes. But she found us halfway through and Dustin panicked."

"And now I have a new scarf."

The sheepish look grew. "It seemed like a good idea at the time."

"I'm sure it did," Cam replied sarcastically. He thought for a moment and then sat back down at his computer, opening up his browser. "Do you know what cd's she wanted?"

Shane came up behind him, leaning on the back of his chair much to his annoyance, "Yeah, something by a band called Eyeshine and another by Northern Dancer," he paused before adding, "I've never heard of either of them."

_Fortunately that doesn't matter._

There was a few minutes of typing before the problem was settled. "Got it. They'll arrive at your house in two days," he looked back up at him. "Just give those to her and be done with it."

Shane tried to cover up his amazement at what had just occurred, choosing to shove his hands into his pockets nonchalantly.

"…That was a good idea," he finally answered.

Two thoughts immediately entered his head at that comment; Cam decided to answer with the slightly less obnoxious of the two.

"Better than yours."

The other had been, _"Yeah, I know."_

Because he did.

If they had come to him in the first place they could've saved themselves a lot of trouble. However, (and he couldn't believe he was defending them) he _did_ get a scarf out of the experience, so from his position this was a gain.

Even if he'd never use it.

Shane smacked the back of his head lightly. "No one likes a smarty pants."

Cam batted his hand away in annoyance, "You did not just use the term smarty pants." He was willing to assume that quip was issued out of stress.

Shane waved his hand at him absently and began to make his way to the door, "Whatever man, I gotta go back to the mall."

"You already got-"

Shane cut him off. "It's not for Tori."

"Oh."

He knew he shouldn't bother asking partly because he (as he always did) already had a hunch as to what the answer was and partly because if the answer was what he thought it was he knew he couldn't _help_ but to get involved.

But he was a sucker for punishment so he asked anyway.

"Dustin?"

Shane gave him a helpless look, "Yeah."

Cam sighed and unwrapped his "present" from around his neck, dropping it beside his keyboard before walking across the room to grab his keys.

"I'll drive you."

This wasn't a question but Shane was going to protest anyway.

"You don't have to-"

_Oh, how surprising._

"Just get in the car," he cut off, already breezing past him and walking down the hall.

Shane caught up with him quickly, trailing behind him slightly but no longer objecting.

Cam supposed he could take his time off now.

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Shopping with Cam hadn't been as terrible an experience as Shane had thought it was going to be. He wouldn't say it was better, or even on the _same_ level as shopping with Dustin (despite the distractions, no one made a better shopping partner than him) but he would definitely rank it higher than a shopping trip with his mom.

Shane couldn't help but shudder at the thought.

He was glad that the tech had been branching out of his comfort zone, actually reaching out to interact with them for non-ranger related business. It made the team function better, making them a more cohesive unit.

…Shane may or may not have been reading books on leadership. It seemed ridiculous at first but those things were helpful.

The change had been…nice, and if anything the incident on Toxipod's island had sped up the process. After they had gotten back (and the Thunder's had left) Cam had fussed over each of them individually, doing a thorough examination for injuries. He had insisted on running multiple scans over Dustin to ensure the effects of the steam were only temporary and had completely worn off. Shane couldn't express how glad he was for this at the time, because despite the fact that Dustin had laughed it off, he could still tell the curly-haired teen was relieved when he the results cam back clean.

Ever since then Cam had made a point of checking up on each of them at least once every day, demanding their location and physical status. While he was being more social he had also buried himself in work, making it so that he would never be out of touch with any of them again. For anyone else Shane would have viewed this obsessive need to observe their behavior as obnoxious, but this was Cam, and this was his odd way of showing them that he cared. As the only non-combatant on their team Shane respected that. If _he_ was unable to help in the field he would have lost it by now out of sheer frustration.

Fortunately, Cam wasn't the same way.

Humorously enough Shirley was still on duty when he returned to Dillard's, and she waved at him as he walked back into the scarf section, not at all surprised by this turn of events because she was magic and she probably already knew it was going to happen anyway.

Cam (and just about everyone other person in the world) agreed that the scarf was the most hideous piece of clothing he had ever laid eyes on. "The bulldog of scarves" he said, but it didn't have the fortune to be ugly enough to be likeable.

A bulldog _wearing _the scarf, now that would be a sight to see.

Despite his comments, he didn't discourage Shane's purchase. He even pitched in for half, waving him off when Shane tried to argue (mostly out of principal because he had already bought the cd's). He would deny it all he wanted, but Shane was getting the feeling that Dustin was becoming Cam's favorite on the team. If he ever brought it up the tech would most likely pick Tori, but Shane knew better.

It was simply one of Dustin's gifts.

Glad as it made him, Shane couldn't help but feel a little odd about the transaction. Cam already had a strong bond with Tori before they had been rangers, and now that he was comfortable around Dustin Shane was beginning to realize he was still an outsider in the tech's book.

_That _was what was bothering him the most.

He was working to fix that, this trip was a start, but he needed to do more. Cam was a valued ally, but he would be an invaluable friend.

Well, he had to take it one step at a time.

After all, once you bought a scarf with a guy you could never really go back.

* * *

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Endnote:

To Rogue Ranger and ValkyrieNyght thank you, not only for you reviews, but for your thoughtful music suggestions. I couldn't pick between you so I just went for both. Much obliged.

As for your questions (and keep them coming when they hit you), yes, it will be a romance, I just want a very solid foundation of bromance before we get to the good stuff.

As for your other questions, they will be answered in time :)

Now, on to the story.

This chapter did not turn out quite how I wanted it to. When I came up with the plot for it I had such high hopes but then Shane (being the jerkface that he is) didn't feel like cooperating even though Cam was totally on board so I ended up with this. I also got kind of sick at looking at it, which is why I gave up and posted it.

This is also the first chapter (I believe) with absolutely no Dustin p.o.v. I don't know how I feel about that.

Until next time.


	12. I Can't Do It Alone

Chapter 12

I Can't Do It Alone

I don't own Chicago the Musical

Takes place during "Boxing Bopp a Roo"

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It was official (not that it needed to be because when it was unofficial it was still pretty cool), they were winners. They couldn't help it; it was simply their natural state of being.

In Dustin's opinion, that's pretty awesome.

After much deliberation (though the yellow ranger could have told them it was completely unnecessary) and yet _another_ attack from Choobo (who seemed to really have it out for them) Hunter and Blake had finally come around and agreed to join their team allowing Dustin to finally utter the "I told you so" he had been saving for Shane (not that his friend had doubted him, he just really wanted to say "I told you so"). He, for one, was glad. Not only would they be stronger, they totally wouldn't have to stress as much when they were fighting because if three rangers were winners, then five rangers would be supreme winning winners of awesometon, or something along those lines. And Tori (she hadn't said this but he knew) was super happy about it to because she got to spend more time with Blake.

Dustin had tried to tease her about that but was silenced when she gave him the evil eye and raised her hand threateningly.

Hey, she hits hard, and a little teasing is not worth _that_.

Sensei, from what he could gather, was happy about the _idea_ of the Wind and Thunder rangers working together because he was old and that's what he appreciated, and Cam was happy about the added firepower. That, Dustin didn't have to guess at because the green-loving teen had told him during his first nightly visit after the team up had become official.

Blake, as far as Dustin could tell, was happy for the same reason Tori was, and Dustin wasn't going to tease _him_ about it because, well…midgets are mean.

...And it would probably get back to Tori anyway so he would be in for twice the pain.

The only people who didn't seem happy with the arrangement were Shane and Hunter.

The "added firepower" (to use Cam's words) they were all for, in fact they seemed to do okay with just about everybody.

Except of course, each other.

Tori said it was an alpha male thing, that they were having issues giving up their authority because they had both been "in charge" (Tori's the one that used the air quotations, _he_ had thought Shane was in charge) of their "respective teams". He added air quotes to that last part because he hadn't known what respective meant until a few days ago when he bugged Cam to tell him.

Right.

It became pretty obvious during training that they had issues dealing with each other, and Sensei decided (though why was beyond Dustin) to split them apart from the rest of the team and let them duke it out until they respected each other or something. Like, beat out their feelings. They started doing this a week ago, and as far as Dustin knew it hasn't worked (unless the goal was to get ridiculous amounts of bruising), and try as he might (and he's tried pretty hard) he can't get Shane to talk about it.

So basically the team's stuck until the red's could work out their differences.

Cam tried to point out that teamwork was something that kindergartners have mastered and suggested that they go find two of _them_ to save the world until Shane and Hunter felt like growing up. And while it would be kind of amusing/cute to have two six year old rangers running around (they would be like mini me's), like Sensei's "beat it out" plan, Dustin was thinking it was a bad idea.

When he informed Cam of this the other simply raised an eyebrow and told him he had been joking.

Which in retrospect, made a lot more sense. You'd think he would be better at picking up on those kinds of things by now.

Anyway, Dustin had defended Shane, he wasn't doing it on purpose (he thought) but ever since the whole island thing Shane just _does not_ like Hunter. And since he and Shane have already had their heartfelt talk on _that_ subject (the limit is one per big event so you have to make them count) the yellow ranger hasn't been able to figure out _why_.

…Whatever, it's too much of a headache to deal with.

Dustin had thought that _maybe_ with the excitement of Kelly's Total Trek (_he_ had been psyched and he couldn't even participate) they would both get distracted and focus on that instead. If it weren't for the skateboard section he would totally own this contest, but he wasn't going to try _that_ again anytime soon.

In a way he had been right.

Except, instead of working _together_, they decided to use the Total Trek as another way to compete with each other to further draw out their alpha male fighting issues.

And Dustin had been hoping that Shane would team up with him for the partner competition too.

Well, so much for that.

He was currently at the track, attempting to teach Shane what he needed to know to at least _stay_ on the bike during the motocross section of the Trek. Shane (he would never understand it) seemed to have issues when dealing with dirt bikes. Put him on a Tsunami cycle and throw a bunch of Kelzaks in the way he could ride for hours one handed, blasting away with his free hand and kicking stray enemies out of the way easily. But bring him to the track, unmorphed, on a regular bike and it was a recipe for disaster.

So despite the fact he was pretty sure Shane wasn't going to get far he agreed to coach him, not that he could learn how to ride in the short amount of time they had (the Trek was in four days). But this was Shane who he would do just about anything for, and he _had_ gotten him that super sweet scarf he had found at Dillard's (it wasn't for wearing, it was for viewing in it's amazing beautiful glory and Dustin kept it wrapped around the music stand in his room where he had a clear view of it from his bed) so here he was, lecturing away even though his friend wasn't listening.

Probably thinking about Hunter.

…he should be focusing on _him_ dagnabit.

He sighed and waved Shane off as he surged forward on the bike, hoping he would at least make a lap if anything else.

_Come on._

_Come on._

_**Come on.**_

…nertz.

His hope was for nothing, as his friend crashed into a bale of hay before he even made it to the track. _Maybe_ if he had paid attention he wouldn't be eating dirt right now.

…Or hay.

…and the bike wouldn't be either.

…_hm_

Who was he kidding; Shane just didn't have a knack for this.

With a wince Dustin raced forward to check on his friend, and more importantly the bike.

Okay, so it was mostly to check on Shane.

Mostly.

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After failed attempt number twelve (which had been slightly better then failed attempt number seven which had been _awful, _and slightly worse then failed attempt number four where Shane managed to stay on the track for four seconds which is so far his longest running time_)_ Dustin suggested/insisted they take a water break so that Shane could rest his body and _he _could fix the bike.

And to be honest he was getting a little tired of watching Shane run into stationary objects. Sure, it was funny when it was on TV and it was somebody you didn't know, but this was his best friend, and _he_ was the one who was going to have to fix all the bike damage when this was over. It would be best if Shane just cut his losses now.

He decided to bring this up casually.

Dustin wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, staring off into the distance (he'd seen Hunter do it a few times) for added effect (coolness) before breaking the silence, "You know if you…"

"No," Shane replied, cutting him off completely.

He hadn't even said anything. Not really.

Dustin stared at him questioningly, "I didn't even…"

"No," Shane interrupted again, staring at him hard.

Now he was just being stubborn. For all he knew Dustin could be trying to give him really helpful information.

Dustin kept his cool and reached forward to squeeze his arm, "Oh, Come on…"

"No," Shane broke in, waving his water bottle, "if Hunter can do it, I can do it."

_Oh really, because the past hour would prove differently_.

He told it like it was, "I'm all for the power of believing man, but you really suck at this."

He was just trying to be honest.

Shane glared at him coldly in return and said nothing.

Dustin wilted after a few minutes under his stare. "Its _true,_" he admitted, gesturing towards Shane's mud covered track suit. He was becoming very intimate with the ground lately.

Dustin refused to be jealous.

"Thanks for the support," Shane growled, looking away from him again and taking another chug from his water bottle. So he was frustrated, big deal. If he would just let Dustin _help_ they could all be hunky dory right now and be at home playing video games or something instead of thinking about how much it's going to cost to fix the bike.

"Look," he started, moving to get in front of Shane, "we could just do the team thing and then…"

"No," Shane barked.

If Dustin didn't know better he would think it was his new favorite word.

He didn't know why the idea of working with him was so unappealing.

"I'm just thinking about all the other innocent bales of hay," he insisted, trying to lighten the mood.

Shane didn't feel like cooperating. "They'll be _fine," _he groused, tossing the empty water bottle into the bag behind him without looking.

…why couldn't the Total Trek have that? _That_ he could do.

It figured.

Being subtle (as Dustin could be) hadn't worked. Being insistent hadn't worked and being humorous (which was something he was really good at) hadn't worked, so he would have to go to his last resort and be…_logical._

Using logic to win an argument is weird, no matter what you say.

Dustin sighed, rubbing the back of his head, "Let's be realistic here…"

Shane interrupted, yet again, "You're spending too much time with Cam."

_What?_

And he hadn't even managed to get an argument out. Unless "realistic" is an argument in itself, and last time he checked, it's not.

"I am not!" He shouted, even though he wasn't sure why.

Like, how much was too much, and what did it have to do with the conversation, and if Shane was mad at Hunter why was he taking it out on _him?_ He was just trying to help.

"Whatever," Shane muttered with surprising fierceness.

Dustin stepped back as though he had been slapped, staring at him in wonder.

…That, was the last straw.

Shane seemed to sense he had crossed a line and sighed, shoulders slumping before looking back at him, "…I'm sorry."

"Whatever," Dustin bit out, mimicking the red's tone and grabbing his gear off of the ground. He wasn't going to stick around to be a punching bag for Shane's issues. If he wanted to listen to people berate him he would visit the jocks at school.

"Dustin…" Shane began, calling after him

It was the yellow ranger's turn to cut him off, "Good luck riding. You can ask Tori for help."

Even if she crashed his bike, she at least made it _onto _the course.

"Dustin!" Shane shouted again, beginning to trail after him.

Dustin simply glared at him over his shoulder, freezing him in his place, "Later bro."

Maybe he would go and spend more time with Cam. Or better yet, Hunter. That would really grind Shane's gears.

…gears…like a robot.

…he wondered if Cam could do the robot.

He's good at like, everything. It would make sense.

…_Well, only one way to find out._

Putting a smile on his face he began the run to Ninja Ops, preparing to make the most of the rest of his day off. It wouldn't all be a waste.

He tried to push away the bitter feeling in his stomach.

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Shane stared at his friends retreating back, cursing himself for his anger. He _never_ shouted at Dustin, not really, but he was just so frustrated lately.

"Nuts," he muttered to himself, tossing his helmet aside.

There wouldn't be any more riding today.

He sighed again.

They had finally gotten their team working well together, like really well. He didn't have to worry about them when they went into a fight because he _knew_ they would come out of it fine. He thought the addition of the Thunder Rangers would help them, and they had, but Hunter didn't feel like cooperating and now he had to go through _this_ to prove who was in charge and now Dustin…

He sighed again, whacking the side of his head. Maybe he could smack the stupid away.

Shane bent over and zipped up his bag, packing all his gear away. He would hit the Skate park, doing something he was good at would clear his head. He slung the bag over his back and bent his head, pushing the bike back to equipment van.

"…I'm blaming Hunter," he mumbled to himself in an attempt to lift his spirits.

Unfortunately, he didn't have the heart to mean it.

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"You should be flattered that I thought of you first dude, I don't know why you're bugging."

Maybe it wasn't just Shane; maybe _everyone_ was angry this week. What if…what if it spread to the pizza delivery guy? Then what would Dustin do for dinner?

Cam sighed heavily before looking at him with his (not humoring) exasperated eyes, "Look Dustin, just because I'm intelligent doesn't mean I'm automatically good at everything."

_Could've fooled me._

He had forgotten to ask Cam about it yesterday, and he had made sure he had the question memorized (he even wrote it on a napkin) so he could ask him tonight, before he forgot about it. Nothing's worse than wanting to know about something when you can't even remember what it was.

He tried to defend himself. "That's not what I meant," he began, sweeping a dirt pile into the dustpan. "I meant that you're already good at a lot of stuff so why can't doing the robot be one of them?"

If you worked with robots, it would make sense that you were good at the robot. Maybe Cam was holding out on him, withholding all his mad dance skills.

Not.

Cool.

Cam frowned at him before going back to typing. "Because I like to focus on the important things in life."

Dustin paused mid-sweep, "And getting funky isn't one of them?"

Because if it's not, it should be.

"Don't make me answer that," Cam replied tersely, clacking away at his keyboard.

The guy can multitask.

"You need to learn how to relax man," Dustin said, ditching his broom and walking over to Cam, massaging his shoulders. "Get your party on."

They frowned simultaneously. Cam from the excessive touching, Dustin at the tense muscles.

Did this guy ever relax?

"That sounds a lot like something I would never want to do," Cam muttered, pausing to push Dustin's hands off. "Ever."

Dustin waited a moment before resuming his massage; his mom said he was really good at them. Cam sighed but didn't bother trying to stop him.

"What do you do when you're not doing this?" Dustin asked, smile spreading across his face.

Cam remained silent.

"Come on, you _have_ to do other things," He continued, pressing a little harder on a particularly sore spot.

Cam hissed, but again, didn't stop him. "I don't _have_ to do anything, except die."

…He supposed he had a point. Like, Dustin knew it was the only guarantee you had in life (he had heard that on TV), like, you aren't even guaranteed that you going to live but…

Cam looked at him questioningly.

Oh, he had stopped moving his hands.

He gave a sheepish smile and started up again. "I always thought that was more of an unfortunate consequence."

"Of living?" Cam asked, tilting his head to the side.

Dustin thought about this.

"…yes?" he asked, pitch rising slightly. So he hadn't thought it through that much.

"Answering a question with a question isn't really answering," Cam informed him, finishing one…thing on the screen and starting up another one.

"…sorry?" Dustin offered, wincing at the question.

He couldn't help it; he didn't know how to answer.

Cam sighed, "You're forgiven."

"Awesome," Dustin said, bouncing slightly in place.

He was just getting back to focusing on his new job when two beeps emitted from his morpher. A quick look told him it was Shane.

He promptly ignored it.

The red ranger would just have to deal.

After a few more beeps Cam stopped his typing and looked at him, "Shouldn't you answer that?"

Dustin shook his head, not stopping his massage. "Its Shane," he informed helpfully.

"And?" Cam asked, waiting for a full explanation.

And it's national everybody ignore Shane day, you ignore guys named Shane, except when you bake a cake and go out of your way to find guys named Shane and eat it in front of them and laugh at them and hold it away from them because they can't have any, because their name's _Shane_.

…that would be one way to make sure no one got named that. Like, guys who were named that before the holiday got started, it would just suck to be them, but the baby's who were named that _after_? There would be no clearer way of knowing your parents didn't love you.

A shake on his hand snapped him out of his thoughts, he looked down to see Cam's worried look.

He smiled at him reassuringly.

"I'm giving him the cold shoulder," he explained, as though nothing happened.

Cam, because he understood, went along with it.

"Dare I ask why?" He asked, finally going back to typing after giving the yellow ranger one last look.

_I'm not gonna break dude_.

Dustin sighed, thinking about what happened yesterday, before the kickboxing kangaroo showed up. "I don't want to talk to him."

"That's usually why one give's the cold shoulder," Cam replied, not impressed by his answer.

He wasn't impressed with a lot of things.

Dustin started rubbing little circles on the back of Cam's neck, earning a content sigh in return. Check, Cam liked the massage.

His morpher gave off two more beeps which he continued to ignore. He dared Shane to try talking to him.

"What did he do?"

Dustin almost missed the question in his staring contest with the morpher.

"Be a jerkface," he replied. Then he went back to staring.

Cam slowed down his typing before stopping altogether, turning his chair around to face him forcing him to take a step back, "Dustin."

That's all he said. Like, that was all he needed to say to get him to spill his guts…okay, so he wouldn't spill his guts but…it was nice to have someone just stop for him.

Even if it made him a little uncomfortable.

Dustin fidgeted for a second now that his hands were unoccupied. "He's just mad," he explained, scratching the back of his head, "I couldn't take it."

Cam nodded in understanding, "Displaced anger?"

Cam should bottle his genius and sell it.

"Yeah," Dustin replied, going back to his dustpan. He focused better when his hands were busy.

"I'm avoiding him," he finished, emptying it into the trash can. He tried to ignore the eyes that were boring into his head.

"How's that going?" Cam asked, sounding…interested.

…cool.

"Pretty good I think," Dustin chirped, smiling for the first time since his morpher beeped. He continued, "Its like, incentive," he reasoned, hunting down stray dirt. "Once he gets along with Hunter I'll talk to him again."

Dustin looked up worriedly when Cam didn't answer right away, he was afraid his idea was dumb, but the look on Cam's face was…thoughtful.

"That," he started, pointing at Dustin to emphasize his point, "might actually work."

Dustin felt his cheeks heat up and turned away from Cam before mumbling, "Thank you."

That was the closest Cam had ever come to telling him "good job" and while Shane and Tori might have said it to him before (and even Sensei), it just…meant a little more when it came from Cam. To impress someone so impressive totally made his day.

Forget Shane.

"I didn't know you were so devious," Cam commented, turning back to his work with a smile.

He had obviously seen Dustin's reaction.

"What?" the yellow ranger asked, when he realized he had no idea what he meant.

"Scheming," Cam clarified, typing away.

One day, Dustin would ask him what he was working on. For all he knew it was a glorified version of pong.

…oh, Cam just said something didn't he?

Dustin thought about it.

"Oh, no way dude, didn't I mean for it to happen at all," he explained, words rushing out of his mouth. "But I slept on it and I still didn't want to talk to him," because he was probably still being _dumb_, "so I decided if _they_ can work out their problems then _we _can work out ours."

And that would fix _that_ problem.

"I suppose that's one way of looking at it."

Dustin decided to take that as a compliment, "Thank you."

After that they worked in silence for a bit, Dustin finishing his sweeping (dusting would be next) while Cam switched from his computer to this ray gun looking thing he'd been fiddling with for a while now, it was the only thing he had refused to explain about, something about it "being a secret".

In Dustin's opinion the tech wasn't sure what it would do yet, and _that_ was why he refused to talk about it.

Cam (surprisingly) broke the silence. "Why aren't you competing in the Total Trek?"

Despite rarely leaving Ninja Ops Cam knew all about the Trek, and it wasn't just because of Dustin; Tori, Shane and Hunter had been going on and on about it all week. In his visits Dustin had never mentioned entering or training for it, so Cam must have figured he was out.

"Skate boards and me don't mix," he returned, putting the broom back into the closet. He grabbed the duster and Pledge off the shelf.

"Skate boards and _I_," Cam corrected.

""Skate boards and you" what?"

Cam stared at him in amusement before waving the comment off. "Never mind." He frowned at a stubborn wire…or something. "Bad experience?" he asked without looking up.

_Total understatement._

"Yeah, I totally smashed my face into the ground," Dustin cringed at the memory. "I'm not doing that again."

_No way no how._

Cam scoffed at him, "It's not that hard, it's just physics."

_No, I think not_

It was more like the most impossible thing to do in the world.

He wagged his finger at Cam knowingly, "You're smart dude, but smarts don't help your balance."

And even if it _did_, smarts didn't help you land major tricks without breaking your neck or your arms or other happy things you needed to do _other_ happy things. Like order pizza.

…he was a little hungry.

"I beg to differ," Cam murmured, staring closer at a circuit thing. "If you understand what you're doing and think about your execution, your probabilities of success will increase exponentially."

So if you looked before you leap? It sounded like it would work in theory but…

…_Hm_.

He smelled an idea.

"So," Dustin began, trying to sound casual while dusting off a random monitor (there were like, twenty of them), "even someone who's never been on a board…"

Cam took the bait easily. Perhaps Dustin _was_ this "devious" thing.

"If they have their theory down it shouldn't be too hard," he replied, finally showing that circuit/wire/screw what's what.

There were no more words to be said as Cam (in his learnified knowledgeness) had said them for him, so he settled on stopping what he was doing and giving him the puppy dog eyes until he gave in.

Cam noticed what he was doing after a few minutes, questioning look on his face until what the curly-haired wanted finally dawned on him; and he pointed at Dustin sternly, "No."

Well, he hadn't expected him to come easy.

"Please?" He asked (because it never hurt to ask).

"No," Cam replied, looking away from him in an attempt to end this conversation.

Dustin wasn't going to give up without a fight.

"Come on Cam…" He plead, but Cam cut him off.

"No."

"But you just said…"

"I lied," Cam insisted, avoiding looking at him. He seemed to have found the weakness of the puppy dog eyes.

"You didn't," Dustin shot back, abandoning his dusting duties and moving so that he was right beside Cam, completely ignoring his personal bubble. He stared hard at the side of his face.

Cam continued focusing on his toy, "I'm not doing it." He stated it like a fact.

Facts were unimportant in the world of Dustin.

"Please?" Dustin asked again, leaning against the tech. He almost felt like a kid at the grocery store, leaning his entire body on mom so that she would buy him some candy. He hoped he wouldn't have to throw a tantrum. That was _so_ not his style.

Cam was irritated but ignored his move. "No," he insisted again.

"Pretty please?" Dustin tried; it was like the "like-like" but with pretty.

It was a super sized please.

"How is that better?" Cam asked irritably, making the mistake of looking at him.

_Because it's **super** sized._

Dustin was there, eyes going full force, "Pretty please with sugar on top?"

Their faces were only inches apart; there was no way his look would not work. The closer you were to the puppy dog eyes, the more vulnerable you were.

Cam stared at him for a few seconds before shaking him off and jerking his head away, focusing fully on his work. "No," he ground out between clenched teeth.

Nertz, he had almost had him.

It was time for plan B.

Subliminal messaging.

Or maybe not, he wasn't totally sure what subliminal messaging was.

This, would be Dustin subliminal message.

"Do it Cam," he coaxed, bouncing slightly in place.

Cam ignored him and turned his head the other way.

Dustin bounded over to his other side repeating, "Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it," at varying volumes and rhythms, whatever it took, he hadn't really cared about the race but the idea of Cam on a skateboard was too good to pass up.

"Now you're not even providing an argument!" Cam exploded, finally looking at him again.

Dustin surged forward, wrapping his arm around his shoulder's, "Do it pretty, pretty _please_," how bout that, two pretty's. "Think of how awesome it would be if we won!" It would be ridiculous, "We would be total underdogs and they would be all doubtful and stuff and then we'd come up from behind and smack them down!"

That would teach Shane.

…what?

"No," Cam repeated, breaking him from his thoughts.

Dustin shook his head and focused, he was almost winning this, "Come on, this would be the perfect chance for you to relax."

It was the next best thing to getting funky.

Cam looked like he was about to toss his arm off but thought better of it, "I can think of at least ten other things that would be far more relaxing," he grumbled, glaring lightly at Dustin.

He should put it into terms Cam would understand, that's what he always does for Dustin when he doesn't get something.

And that's a lot.

"Think of it as an experiment," he stated happily. Cam always loved a good experiment.

"No."

Okay, now he was just being stubborn.

If he was smart enough to be able to skateboard the only reason he was holding out was because he felt like being mean. Unless he was just talking the talk.

…that could be it, and Dustin was just embarrassing him or something.

_...Oops_

"Oh…" he whispered, it finally dawning on him, "I get it."

Cam looked at him suspiciously, "What?"

Dustin pulled off his arm, suddenly feeling silly about the whole thing, "You can't do it."

"What?" Cam repeated, but this time it was in disbelief.

_It's not that hard to get man._

He smiled at his friend knowingly, "You're all talk but you can't do it…"

"I can do it," Cam cut off, defending himself. His eyes widened and he began to shake his finger at Dustin, "and you're not going to bait me…"

Bait?

He wished he knew what he was doing sometimes so that he could do it better.

"_Please_ Cam," he repeated; giving up on his other tactics and sticking with the one he was good at.

This time Cam hesitated before answering "…no."

It almost sounded like a question.

"Cam?" Dustin pressed, tentatively.

The green clothed teen frowned, eyes locked with Dustin's. They stood like that, silent for who knows how long.

It felt like forever.

It was probably a few minutes.

"…fine," Cam gave in, sighing and slumping his shoulders.

"Really?" Dustin asked; it was almost too good to be true.

"Yes," Cam replied, and Dustin was across the room in a heartbeat, latching on to him in a fierce hug, pressing his face against his neck.

"But I'm not practicing with other people around," Cam warned, like he would get stage fright or something. "We'll do it at night."

_Whatever you want man._

This was going to be great.

Dustin broke off the hug, taking a few steps back, "Tomorrow then?" he asked, then without waiting for an answer because they were totally going to do it tomorrow he said, "I'll get you some gear."

He still had the stuff he tried to use last year. The stuff that Shane was going to let him borrow had been _way_ to red.

"Dustin…" Cam began, calling after him as he made his way out of the lab.

"Don't sweat it man, I got this!" He yelled over his shoulder as he began his run home.

He so totally did. It was nice having something for a change.

Now if only he could remember where he put that stuff.

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Endnotes:

My never ending thanks to ValkyrieNyght and Rogue Ranger for your thorough and thoughtful reviews, it always helps to know if I'm doing something right.

To the skateboarding community out there (if you happen to be reading this) I don't mean to take your sport lightly, I just thought it would be hysterical to get Cam on a board and this was the only way I could think of to do it.

I was watching "Bopp A Roo" again, and I had forgotten this but at the very end, for some odd reason the writers have Shane say, "We try to leanify with great knowledgness". This line freaking kills me, it's just _so_ bad, and it's in there for seemingly no reason, so I tried to do a little "shout out" to it in Dustin's inner monologue. Because it's so bad, it's a little good.

Started working on Dustin/Shane piggy back ride picture, it should be out soon.

Until Next time.


	13. Magic Foot

Chapter 13

Magic Foot

I don't own The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee

Takes place during "Boxing Bopp a Roo"

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There were many different types of ideas in the world, all of varying shapes and sizes and effects.

Some were labeled "bad" and some were labeled "good". There are useful ones, useless ones, lewd ones, maniacal, benevolent, smart, awful, ect., ect., types of ideas just coursing about creation, begging to be put to use. They were simply a part of the way the world functioned, an ingrained transaction human beings acted out every day as a way of revolutionizing society as we know it. "Good" ideas brought mankind forward and bad ideas, while not so helpful as their counterparts, allowed us the opportunity to learn from their shortcomings, enabling the human race to produce more and more good ideas to continue thriving and excelling.

This, Cam was almost certain, would be classified as a bad idea.

…The unfair truth of it all was that it had been _his_ idea in the first place.

Talk about shooting yourself in the foot.

He was currently (with slight trepidation) waiting for Dustin to arrive at the Skate park. As the tech requested it was night, the lampposts casting light over the wood and concrete of the course, and the park (with the exception of himself) was empty, just how he had wanted it. This had been a point he had argued with himself for a while over. Technically this was an experiment, and he had felt a distinct need to control his environment to ensure his performance would not be affected in any way. He had by no means, "stage fright", but if he was going to pick up a board for the first time (and the results were rather undesirable) he would rather do it alone. Then again, if he broke his neck and died he _would_ like to have some witnesses.

Ultimately, he discerned that Dustin would be enough of an audience and left it at that.

…How did he end up in this situation?

Oh yes, he'd "Shot off his mouth".

He had been intending (okay, so he hadn't really been paying attention to what he was saying because he was a _little_ distracted with his project) for his words to be comforting, maybe even motivating for Dustin so that _he_ would be the one attempting to do this…craziness. However Dustin, being far slyer than he looked, took advantage of his moment of distraction and now his pride wouldn't let him back out of his agreement. Actually, that's no totally true, he had tried to back out multiple times. It was just… Dustin, with his lax boundaries on physical interaction and his seemingly innocent pleading had more or less "wooed" him over to the idea, and now here he was.

It was stupid, to be honest. And while the situation looked to be only for the yellow ranger's gain, Cam knew deep down that it was to his advantage as well.

To be truthful it made him feel a little dirty.

He could go on and on (in his mind, to his father, to the world if need be) about how friendship was about give and take and that this…experiment was simply another way of strengthening their bond, but if Cam was going to speak truthfully (to himself at least if he couldn't do it for anybody else) he had done it for…the hugging.

That was one way of putting it.

Dustin, in all his observations, was a very tactile creature. He was constantly seeking out physical connections with the people he trusted. He didn't even think about it, he simply did it. For Cam this was the worst part. To Dustin it all amounted to simple friendship (Cam had a theory that he might not get enough affection in his home environment, leading him to seek it from others, his constant presence at Ninja Ops only further supported this hypothesis), and he never read any deeper meanings into it.

But that wasn't how Cam felt about it.

His father's a freaking guinea pig; it's a little difficult to receive any kind of physical reassurance. Even when he _had_ been human that had been difficult to achieve. They simply weren't touchy feely people.

So when Dustin was simply...Dustin, and hanging on Cam and hugging him and high fiving him and whatever the action of the day was (it was pathetic to say the tech actually kept track) he couldn't help but think how _nice_ it felt to hold somebody or to have someone hug him. He hadn't known how starved he had been for that kind of personal interaction until Dustin had gone and given it to him for free. The part that really made him hate himself the most was that he was unable to determine whether he appreciated these…actions because they were from _Dustin_, or if he simply craved the interactions, in which case he was just using the yellow ranger and he was a dirtbag who should have never opened his mouth to speak to the team outside of ranger-related business and should lock himself in his lab and never come out again ever.

For all his intelligence, he couldn't figure out the answer.

Though a small part of him knew that he would take _whatever_ Dustin offered.

He tried to ignore that part.

To save himself the headache, and to ascertain he didn't come to completely hate himself, he decided to take the easy way out of it and simply not think about it. Sure, it would always be there looming over his shoulder, stuck on him like his shadow, weighing him down bit by bit until he eventually lost it, but for _now_ he would be able to function.

At this point, that's all he really wanted.

Right.

So, where was he?

Skate Park, scoping out the set up.

From what he had gathered from Past Total Trek's Kelly simply used the park as it already was, not bothering to bring in any new ramps or change the layout. For seasoned skaters this would be a great advantage, so now Cam was in the position where he had to catch up on years of familiarity from the veterans. The tricky thing with street skating was that you not only had to focus on the trick you were about to do, but you had to think ahead to where you would land, where you would go next, and what trick came after _that_ before the entire process started all over again. Cam didn't doubt his capabilities, but he would have an incredible handicap compared to say, Shane.

Speaking of whom…

Finally, after a their second round with the Kangaroo (Bopp a Roo, whatshisface) the red ranger and Hunter had managed to put their differences aside to learn how to work together, and they _finally _had a fully functioning team.

It took them long enough.

The weird thing though was that after the fight debrief at Ninja Ops was that _now_ Shane and Dustin were having issues. The red ranger just could not stay likeable.

No, that wasn't fair to Shane. Cam had gotten the feeling that Dustin's anger had been kindled two nights before as despite his constant babble (on both nights) he had never once mentioned Shane. The first night Cam had thought the world would end. The second night he began to seriously worry about Dustin's mental condition, which may be another reason he had agreed to try skateboarding, even after he managed to coax the yellow ranger into talking about Shane.

It was unnatural to see them at odds; Cam hoped (for all their sakes) that it would end soon.

A glimpse of movement out of the corner of his eye shook him out of his reverie and he turned to observe Dustin's approach, laden with a skateboard and a well-stuffed duffle bag, full of what Cam would assume were pads and other safety gear. The tech had done his share of preparation as well, bringing along his laptop to supply and record the necessary data, and a well equipped first aid kit. He could've been the best skater in the world who never missed a trick and he _still_ would have brought this thing along, simply because being associated with Power Rangers tended to make unexpected things occur.

Also, if Dustin managed to wound himself (he may only be observing but he would _find_ a way) Cam would be ready, because the Power Rangers themselves seemed to attract injuries like flies to honey. Compound that with Dustin's natural tendencies and you found yourself a person who managed to hurt themselves while simply _dusting._ No joke, this had happened.

Cam had learned not to be surprised by now.

"Cam, dude!" Dustin shouted, waving at him excitedly, rapidly closing the distance in between them. Though he was still in conflict with Shane, Dustin still managed to be as cheerful and enthusiastic as ever. It was that kind of focus Cam could only wish to have, though he was unsure how exactly the curly-haired teen did it. Either whatever issues he had with Shane really weren't that bad, or he was really good at ignoring his problems. If it was the later, Cam was very worried.

He would have to keep an eye on that.

"You got your smarts ready?" Dustin asked, dropping the bag on the ground with no particular care. Cam hoped there was nothing fragile in there, the treatment of the bag would indicate such, but with the yellow ranger that wasn't always the case.

Cam blinked and took a closer inspection of the bag, dust ingrained in the strap, "I am adequately prepared, if that's what you mean."

That was what he meant, but Cam was always one to clarify.

Dustin smiled and crouched down next to the bag, unzipping it. "It took me a while to dig this stuff up, but it's still in good condition," he pulled out a towel and flicked it to the side, emitting a cloud of dust. "A little dusty though," he admitted. Cam pulled another towel out of the bag and mimicked his friends actions, producing the same results.

Dustin grinned sheepishly, "Okay, a lot of dusty."

Cam shrugged and tossed the towel to the side overlooking Dustin's blatant disregard to grammar. "They'll function fine," he consoled while digging through the bag for the necessary gear. Dustin joined him immediately, tossing a pair of kneepads beside Cam.

"Yeah, a little dust never hurt anything," Dustin admitted, unperturbed. He stopped suddenly, and Cam knew before he asked that he had a question, "Except computers right?"

Cam chose to nod in response and Dustin took it as a signal to resume searching.

Unlike most people Dustin genuinely asked questions for the purpose of receiving and dutifully storing away the answers, which you would think was the given purpose of questions, but with the yellow ranger it was somehow more…sincere. It wasn't small talk, there wasn't a hidden meaning, he simply asked a question (even if the question was on a whim) and appreciated the answer, whatever it was. He had a tendency to stop whatever else he might be occupied with because he was focusing on the response, which made it very easy to recognize when he was about to ask something. Cam had yet to figure out how to be able to identify _what_ he would ask about, but has long given up on it.

There were some things that just weren't meant to be known.

They were in the middle of dusting off (even though he had gotten Dustin to take over those duties at Ninja Ops it still found a way to get to him) the mostly new gear when Dustin broke the silence, nervously at first, but gradually picking up speed.

"Hey, I uh…I told Tori, well, I half-told Tori and then I couldn't remember if I was _supposed_ to tell Tori so I stopped, but then I remembered you never mentioned _not_ telling anyone and I figured I was halfway there so I finished telling her about it and…"

Cam nodded, reassuring Dustin that it was okay, "She didn't insist on coming?" he asked. Because if _he_ thought this was a bad idea, Tori was probably somewhere in the vicinity of _"why-don't-we-just-give-earth-over-to-Lothor?"_ bad idea…land.

…he was spending a lot of time with Dustin.

It's not an excuse, it's merely a reason.

"Oh, she did dude," Dustin informed him, pausing mid-wipe of the helmet. "I just told her she would have to wait with everyone else." He smiled at Cam before resuming his work, and the tech couldn't help but know how proud Dustin was of that fact.

Cam went ahead and felt a little proud with him. Then he realized the implications of Dustin's statement, how he assumed (without having witnessed it) that he would be able to pull this off.

And that made him think.

He would rue the day if he had to pick his biggest supporter, because the answer he would be expected to give would be his father, but the answer that would be the most _truthful_ would be Dustin.

Cam took a moment to let that settle in before responding, "Your faith is abundant."

Despite the leap in conversation Dustin simply nodded, not noticing (or not caring about) the gap. "It's you," he stated as though it explained everything. Thankfully, he continued, "If you say you've got what it takes, then there's nothing to worry about."

If only it were that easy.

"Okay, we are officially dust free!" Dustin exclaimed, hopping up, helmet and board in hand, "Let's get this thing started!"

Because Cam was ever so eager to test his theory.

…He made his bed, he'll lay in it.

Even if he doesn't want to.

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As it turned out, it hadn't been as bad as Cam had originally thought it was going to be. Sure, there were a few falls (as was expected), but for the most part he actually… "rocked" (Dustin's words, not his, though he agreed they were applicable). His balance was fine, so he could ride easily, and after a few tries he had managed an ollie (wherein you make the board hop) which was essentially a "gateway" trick. He had lost his board the first few tries, pushing the tail down and hopping off, but eventually he got the hang of it. After that he moved to a Frontside 180, an ollie where you rotated the board 180 degrees.

Fixing the zords? Writing programs? Managing multiple experiments? That's nothing.

Accomplishing two of the most basic skateboarding moves? Bring on the parade of feeling stupidly proud.

It figured.

The next move on his list was a Backside Boardslide, one of the beginner grinds. He was finally moving off of the ground and onto the rails and to be honest he was a little intimidated. However Dustin was great support, cheering him on and pointing out things that he didn't see on his failed attempts. The Backside Boardslide required you to ollie onto a rail, then you have to turn your board horizontal and "grind" until you reached the bottom. It was essential not to go too fast, if he did he would lose the board and he did _not_ feel like smashing against the rail, and he needed to make sure he kept his balance or he would lose the board, and he had done a double check to make sure the rail was slick enough so he wouldn't get on there and have his board stop while he continued forward.

After checking everything he needed (twice) Dustin had badgered him to stop putting it off and just do it, and seeing as he had everything he needed, he gave it a go.

His board did not stick, so that was nice. He was balanced right and he wasn't going to fast when he started. All these things he achieved.

He failed _spectacularly_ in the landing. Cam hadn't managed to turn his board back forward in time and, in laymen's terms, "ate it" when he reached the bottom, rolling a few times before he came to a halt. Luckily the gear Dustin had provided him with protected him from the worst of the fall, and the board was as durable as ever, so everything was fine.

He had waved off Dustin's mothering and tried it again, knowing where he had gone wrong this time and…once again, he failed.

The third time however, he got his act together.

Cam barely managed to get off the board before Dustin tackled him; pounding his back (he hid his wince) and asking him what was next.

Next.

Of course there was more.

Cam only needed one grind (being as rails were in limited supply and he only wanted to score high enough to get by), so it was time to go to the vert ramp.

The halfpipe was what most people envision (at least that's what he thought of) when they think about skateboarding. If he played his cards right, this was where he would be getting most of his points. It was also where he would be getting most of his pain if he messed anything up.

He tried to be optimistic, if he had managed the Backside Boardslide; he could manage at least a few of these. He started easy, a Rock Fakie and a Rock and Roll, basic moves that didn't require actually going into the air. He'd done each of them a few times to ensure that he had them, and was ready to move on when his luck finally ran out.

To add insult to injury he hadn't even been attempting a trick at the time, he had simply been picking up speed going back and forth when he landed just a bit off and his board decided it wanted to go off the ramp and took him with it. For a moment he thought he could just ride it out, but his board (the conniving charlatan that it was) had other plans and promptly hit a rut, catapulting him forward and causing him to land awkwardly on his foot before bowling into Dustin, who was attempting to cushion his fall. He rolled off of Dustin and did a quick check to see if he sustained any injuries (thankfully he hadn't) before tentatively pressed on his right ankle to see that yes, it hurt, and no, there would be no more skateboarding tonight.

He couldn't figure out if that made him happy or disappointed.

His foot made his decision for him, and he opted for being in pain.

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It had happened so fast (cliché and overused as that was but it _had_ happened really fast) that Dustin hadn't actually seen where everything went wrong, but one moment Cam was rocking it (because he was Cam and that's just what he did) and the next moment he was flying off the ramp at roadrunner speed and Dustin didn't even think before he moved to catch him, throwing himself a little backwards so the collision wouldn't be as bad as it could be (thank goodness for secret ninja school).

Cam was already off of him by the time Dustin recovered (because it was _his_ back that hit the ground) but he didn't get up, and Dustin got the sinking feeling that he had really hurt himself and the guilt just poured itself on while he frantically ran to get the first aid kit. He was back at Cam's side in record time, and he quickly opened the bag while casting nervous looks at his friend's ankle that seemed to have elected it was time to change colors and get swollen.

This would be a lot cooler if it wasn't Cam.

And then he realized he had no idea what Cam needed, "…uh, what do you-"

"There's a cold compress in there," Cam ground out through closed teeth, Dustin located it and gave it to him. "I'll tape it on before we get going."

"Going?" He echoed, a little confused, gently pressing the pad down against the swollen ankle.

Cam might not know this, but with that foot he wasn't going anywhere, unless Dustin helped him.

Oh…okay so they could go places.

Cam raised an eyebrow at him, already having figured this out. "I would prefer to tape this up at Ninja Ops."

Shouldn't Dustin take him to a hospital or something?

"Oh, right," he mumbled distractedly, digging around until he found the tape. "What's wrong with it?"

What if he broke it? Sensei would be _so_ mad.

_Tori_ would be so mad.

He wasn't sure if Blake and Hunter would be mad, but Blake might be just for the sake of not getting on Tori's bad side. He didn't want to think about how Shane would feel.

Dustin felt a little mad. At himself.

Cam took his prize just as he located it, and together they taped the compress in place. "It's just sprained I think," Cam explained, "I'll run some tests on it to be sure."

When they got back.

A new voice broke into their conversation, "You got off easy, all things considered."

Dustin could recognize that sound from anywhere.

"Shane?" he asked before he could stop himself.

What was he doing here? Dustin had made sure he wasn't going to be at the park, purposefully picking a time that was _way_ after when Shane normally left. In fact the yellow ranger had scoped out the park before he even met up with Cam, just to make sure.

Shane, catching his questioning look explained himself, "Tori told me."

"So you decided to keep an eye on us?" Cam countered, completely unaffected by Shane's sudden appearance.

Was he hiding in the trees, waiting for them to fail?

Cam… he meant waiting for _Cam_ to fail.

Dustin wasn't doing anything.

Shane ignored the question and responded with one of his own, "Did you ever stop to think that this was a stupid idea?"

Dustin couldn't hide his flinch at that and started to defend him…them, Cam, "He was doing fine…"

Shane cut him off, frowning irritably at Cam, "What, were you going to master skateboarding in two days?"

Not master it, just like, be medium at it. Because _some_ people don't feel like playing on some _other_ people's team so those _other_ people have to go find… _other_-_other_ people who weren't disgusted by the idea of working with the _other _people.

He was overreacting, a lot, because Shane was teaming up with Hunter and that was good for the team, but-

He didn't have to be such a jerk about it.

Cam jumped in this time, defending their experiment, "That's not what we intended-"

"You could've broken your neck," Shane butt in, focusing on the tech.

What was his problem? Was he mad at Dustin for suggesting this to Cam? Was he mad at Cam for going along with it? Was he just mad at everybody because that's just how he was going to be for now on?

Well Dustin had had enough. "Dude, would you just lay off!" He shouted, standing so that he could glare at Shane right in the eye.

There was a tense silence were they just stared at each other.

Shane was the one who broke it off, jerking his head to the side to look at Cam. "Come on, we need to get you back to Ninja Ops," he spat out coldly, hefting one of the bags onto his shoulder before moving to help Cam. Dustin copied him, packing up the first aid kit and taking Cam's other side, and soon they were walking/hobbling to Cam's car.

Shane stopped them just short of it, turning to face Cam, "Can you drive?"

Cam shook his head, "Don't have to, just sit in the driver's seat and look pretty." Dustin blinked at him confusedly, Cam continued, "Auto pilot will do the rest."

The question was out before he could stop, and he cursed himself for breaking his self imposed silence, "You put auto pilot in your car?"

Because that was kind of awesome. Just think of the possibilities. Then again, this was Cam so it probably followed _every_ traffic rule ever and drove like, five miles under the speed limit.

Cam smiled at him as they got in the car, "How do you think the mobile command center gets around?"

Dustin scratched his head, drawing a blank, "…Ninja Power?"

"Not quite," Cam responded.

Dustin refused to let Shane's silence affect him in any way.

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The ride back to Ninja Ops was spent in complete silence. Cam knew that this was merely the calm before the storm. This…tiff, whatever this _problem_ was, was going to be settled tonight and he was going to make sure of it. At this point he didn't trust either one of them to be able to work it out on their own, and if they kept going on like this it was going to start affecting their ranger duties.

It would be best to stop it before it got that far.

He had hoped to use taping his ankle up as a team building exercise, with him relaying instructions while Dustin and Shane carried them out, but unlike when the red and crimson ranger were at odds with each other these two actually managed to work together quite efficiently. In fact, they were _so_ efficient they didn't even feel the need for any kind of small talk _whatsoever_.

It was a little disturbing.

When they had finished there was another (to add to the great list they had accumulated so far) awkward silence where Shane simply glowered at the wall and Dustin nervously stared at his feet and fidgeted in place, unsure of what to do. Like many other times, Cam knew what to do, and it was happening now. He had even brought them into the sanctity of his room to ensure some level of privacy. With a ninja master hanging around that was difficult to find, but his room was the best option.

"This," he began, breaking the silence and earning two shocked looks, "ends now. Whatever issues you two have need to be worked out and you're not leaving until everything's resolved."

Dustin blinked at him, startled (he probably assumed Cam hadn't noticed), but Shane looked like he was about to protest so Cam continued, "It's going to start affecting the team."

At that the red ranger snapped his mouth shut.

When all else failed, guilt them into it. Cam had learned that from Tori.

Before they could fall back into silence the tech decided to get the ball rolling. "You," he started, pointing to Shane, "did or said something to Dustin," the tan teen nodded, guilt seeping into his features. "You," he continued, pointing at Dustin, "Know that he wasn't really angry with you," Dustin nodded, but refused to look at either one of them.

Mentally Cam sighed; this was one of those things that was really about something else…a deeper wound.

He persevered through this revelation. "Now you," back to Shane, "have attempted to apologize, multiple times, I'm assuming."

Shane nodded but didn't look at him, instead focusing on Dustin who still had his eyes glued to the floor.

What was wrong?

"So far, you," back to Dustin, "have avoided him, and ignored any attempts he's made to talk to him," he finished, leaning back on his bed.

There it was, all the facts on the table, everybody on the same page. Everyone… except himself and Shane.

It was Dustin who now held all the cards.

"So the real question is, why are you upset?"

His question hung in the air, causing Dustin to shift his weight uncomfortably before he (for the first time since starting this conversation) finally took his eyes off of the floor.

"Dustin?" Shane asked, pleading (not obviously but that's what it was) for him to answer and for the first time Cam realized how hard these two days of silence must have weighed on the red ranger.

"I uh…didn't do anything," Dustin mumbled, taking sudden fascination with his shoes. "I thought about why it…bugged me and I know it wasn't…" he paused for a second waving vaguely in the air before looking back up at Shane, "I didn't do anything wrong."

Shane took a step forward, "I know, I was just mad about…"

Dustin continued as though he hadn't heard him. "Like, if I had done something wrong I get that, yell at me, I'll fix it, but I hadn't _done _anything and…" he paused again, rubbing his arms, "I guess that bothered me."

He guessed that bothered him. It "bothering" him was an understatement; anyone with eyes could see that but for _now_ they would take what was given and fix that. Cam wondered how many other kinds of things "bothered" Dustin.

And why had they happened?

"…_yell at me, I'll fix it"._

He had the distinct feeling _that_ particular statement would be haunting him for a while.

They didn't yell at ninja training. He was pretty sure they didn't yell at the track.

"I'm sorry," Shane said, pulling Cam from his thoughts. Like himself, Shane had picked up on the fact that Dustin was holding back, but had chosen to not comment on it.

"Me too, I-" Shane cut off the rest of Dustin's statement by pulling him into a hug, an action that Dustin immediately reciprocated, and Cam couldn't help but feel (despite the circumstances) a small flare of _(jealousy/longing/envy) _by the sight. But that quickly faded into a distinct uncomfortable feeling, causing him to avert his eyes to the side. He was in the middle of thinking of the most polite (while still being abundantly clear) way of asking them to leave when Dustin called for his attention.

"Dude, group hug!"

No, he couldn't stand, and it was kind of late anyway, and the hugging thing was kind of bothering him and before he managed to voice any of these protests Dustin had carefully navigated himself between Cam and the wall, resting his head on his shoulder and throwing an arm across his waist and Shane (much to Cam's surprise) was only a few seconds behind him, smiling in contained amusement before taking Cam's other side and throwing an arm over his shoulder, leaning slightly into him.

It was ironic that their attempts to be nice were only serving to bring him further self loathing.

His effort to shake them off only encouraged them to latch on tighter, and eventually he gave up and decided to enjoy the comfort.

Even if it made him a dirtbag.

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Endnotes:

As always I would like to thank Rogue Ranger for your review, any and all feedback is great motivation to get these chapters out!

Yay second end of chapter group hug! This time it's for Cam, so it's different.

…because I said so.

So I would once more like to emphasize the fact that in no way, shape, or form am I saying skateboarding is easy. In fact all the research I had to do (I kind of gave up on the vert tricks) only further increased my respect for any/all skateboarders, because it takes guts to do what they do. Seriously, some of these moves are crazy.

Also, happy Super Bowl everyone! Or, everyone who watches football. I don't, but I thought it was worth mentioning.

Until next time.


	14. Simple Joys

Chapter 14

Simple Joys

I don't own Pippen

Takes place after "Boxing Bopp a Roo"

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"This is terrible."

Leave it to Hunter to find _just_ the right words to describe what they were watching. Tori couldn't argue though, it was terrible.

"It could be worse," Shane offered, popping another piece of popcorn into his mouth.

She took her eyes off the program in time to see Hunter scrunch his nose in distaste. "No, I don't think it could," he argued, before shoving a handful of popcorn into his mouth. She elected not to comment on their never ending stomachs, they would simply swear that they needed it because they were growing boys. It's the same argument they used when they decimated the pizza.

Dustin waved for no particular reason. "It could be in like, Dutch dude," he started, pulling his eyes away from the screen long enough to make a serious face at Hunter, "Then you wouldn't be able to understand them."

Tori cringed. That _would_ be worse.

"Cam might," Blake suggested, shifting his arm again. He'd been doing this for the past half hour in an attempt to sneak it over her shoulder. He thought she hadn't noticed.

Apparently the words "secret ninja training" meant nothing to him.

Still, she wished he would just hurry up.

Cam let out a sigh, "I don't know Dutch."

"But you could build something to _translate_ Dutch," Hunter pointed out around another mouthful of popcorn.

Blake crept his arm closer. "Ten bucks says he's already built something that does that."

She couldn't see it, but she bet Cam was rolling his eyes. "I haven't," he professed stoically. Hunter took another glance at Blake's arm progress and made an exasperated face. Tori allowed herself a small smile.

This had been a good idea.

"Ohh!" Dustin suddenly exclaimed, raising his hand and looking back at them, "Can I take that bet?"

Blake looked at him quizzically, "He already answered."

And therefore the bet couldn't be applied, but that's not always how things worked out in Dustin's head.

They yellow ranger set his arm down dejectedly, "So…I don't get ten bucks?" he looked at Shane and Cam for confirmation

"No Dustin," Shane reinforced, looking distinctly amused.

"Shoot," Dustin murmured with sadness before slumping against Cam dramatically. To his credit, Cam didn't push him off; he simply readjusted his shoulders to accommodate the yellow ranger better.

It was cute to see them get along so well. That had been happening more and more lately. At first Tori had chalked it up to Dustin just being himself but Cam kept shooting him these looks. She couldn't describe them, but it looked like there was something he was trying to figure out.

She would keep an eye on that, maybe talk to him about it later.

"I have," Cam broke in, "however, written a program to translate foreign languages."

Hunter popped another piece of popcorn into the air, catching it in his mouth. "How is that not the same thing as building?" he asked, chewing away his victory.

Shane smirked and mimicked his actions with two pieces.

Tori mentally groaned, they better not start _that_ nonsense again.

The look on Cam's face must have said the same thing because they stopped and gave abashed looks while holding their hands up in surrender. He sighed, "It's different."

Dustin perked back up, "Can I get ten bucks _now_?"

He looked hopefully between Blake and Hunter.

"You never took the bet!" Blake exclaimed, Dustin opened his mouth and the Thunder bother clarified, "Before."

"That's a no," Shane replied, reaching over Cam to ruffle Dustin's hair. The other sighed in fake despair and went back to leaning against Cam, reaching over to grab a handful of popcorn out of his bowl. Cam tensed for a second before finally relaxing. Shane, despite his casual look, caught it action, and narrowed his eyes suspiciously before turning back to the screen. He brought his right elbow up and rested it on Cam's shoulder, leaning against him lightly. Cam tensed again, but eventually relaxed. Dustin didn't notice the transaction, toying with the hem of his sleeve absent mindedly.

Yes, there was definitely something there.

Tori decided to worry about it later; right now they were celebrating their many successes. Not only had Hunter and Shane managed to win Total Trek (which was a blessing because if they hadn't worked together they would both be gravely injured right now) but they were celebrating the fact that they were _finally_ a team.

Cam had yet to explain where he sprained his ankle.

Tori was still waiting for the opportune moment to ask him.

In order to celebrate fully Dustin had suggested they get together and watch the brand new Power Rangers TV show, "Power Rangers Alpha Squadron", that happened to be premiering Monday night. Sure it was a kid's show but they all decided they needed a good laugh and went along with it. As soon as the guy's shift ended at Storm Chargers they all met up at Ninja Ops and where Cam introduced them (with great prodding) to a "living room" that none of them had known existed. Cam had explained that he had withheld the knowledge out of the fear that if they had known about it, they would never leave which was…fair enough.

It wasn't a big room, but it was clean, had a large TV with cable hookup and a big comfy couch that she, Blake, and Hunter currently occupied. Dustin, Cam, and Shane had opted to take the floor, leaning their backs against the foot of the couch. It was their first time to hang out as a real team.

And it was pretty amazing.

Terrible programming not included.

"I think it would be better if it was in Dutch," Hunter suddenly announced, waving his arm with a flourish, spilling some popcorn onto Shane. The red ranger glared at him for a second before Dustin reached over and grabbed the stray morsels and happily popped them into his mouth. Shane relaxed and went back to staring at the TV where brightly colored heroes were running around fighting…green things.

She wasn't sure what they were; she hadn't really been paying attention.

"You're right bro;" Blake replied, missing the popcorn fiasco, "it's not like they're saying anything useful."

Hunter nodded gravely, "I think understanding the dialogue has made me dumber."

_Ain't that the truth._

"It's the writer's fault," Cam lectured, frowning as Dustin reached over him again for the popcorn. He sighed and lifted his arm up, draping it over the other's shoulders, allowing the curly-haired teen to scoot closer and have easier popcorn access.

Tori couldn't help but glare at his head. _He_ could do it, in less than thirty minutes, so what was taking Blake so long? She looked at Hunter desperately, mentally asking him to help. He rolled his eyes and shoved Blake into her. Before the navy ranger could react she resituated herself into his side.

She wished she could see his face, she bet it read something along the lines of _"Wha…?"_

Boys.

"I wasn't blaming the actors," Blake admitted, once he caught up to what happened.

"They could all be backwards," Dustin suggested suddenly and stopped, not bothering to explain any further. Tori, Cam, and Shane were unaffected (being used to similar outbursts) but the looks on Hunter and Blake's faces were priceless. Tori would have to ask Cam to get a screen shot of it from the security footage.

Hunter blinked in confusion before finally asking, "What?"

Dustin took his cue to continue. "Like, they could always have their backs to the camera. That would totally be worse," he explained, making a turning motion with his hands, "Who wants to talk to someone's back?" he asked, looking back up at Hunter until a flash of movement on the screen caught his eye and he went back to being glued to it.

At least one person liked this show.

It was Cam who broke the odd moment of silence, "I always appreciate a forward speaking companion."

Dustin nodded in satisfaction. "Cam agrees with me," he pumped his fist into the air, "I win."

"In what way-" Hunter started to ask but was cut off with a wave of Dustin's hand.

"Those are the rules," the yellow ranger reported in all seriousness. Shane muffled a snicker into his hands and Tori pressed the heel of her hand into her mouth, she wanted to hear how this played out.

"What rules?" Hunter asked, legitimately wondering on what he missed out on.

"_The _rules," Dustin declared, gesturing broadly with his free hand.

Blake looked on in amusement.

"The rules you just made up," Hunter replied, unimpressed after having finally caught on.

Tori allowed a giggle to escape.

Dustin wilted. "Maybe…kind of…" he trailed off before pressing his head against Cam's shoulder and mumbling, "…yes."

Before Hunter could make any kind of witty remark Shane cut in, "I agree with Dustin."

Instantly the yellow ranger brightened up, reaching over to high five his friend "See, majority of the team agrees with me. I win," he gushed happily before pointing to himself proudly. Tentatively Cam offered up his hand and Dustin high fived him to.

Shane tensed briefly.

It was some of the weirdest cause and effects Tori had ever witnessed.

However Cam had noticed this one, and offered his hand out to Shane as well, who accepted easily. The tan teen hesitated for a moment before he carefully put his arm around Cam as well, his hand trailing off behind the back of Dustin's head. Tori wondered if anyone else was seeing this.

If the Thunder's noticed, they didn't care.

"There's _nothing_ to win," Hunter insisted before reaching for another handful of popcorn only to discover his bowl was empty. He shrugged and reached over to grab some from Blake who promptly smacked his hand away. Hunter responded by smacking the back of his head and grabbing some popcorn anyway.

"Majority is more than half," Cam pointed out calmly, shaking his head at the antics of the characters on the screen. Tori noted that Shane was doing the exact same thing.

"I also side with Dustin," Blake replied jokingly, tossing a kernel at Hunter's head.

His brother swatted at him, annoyed. "Now you're just trying to make me mad," he mock-growled, flicking the kernel back at him.

If they started a kernel fight Tori was ducking behind the couch, she didn't care how comfortable she was, she was _not_ taking another shower today.

Blake caught her silent communication and flicked the kernel over the edge of the couch. "Go with the flow bro, just go with the flow," he emphasized this by patting Hunter's arm in a consoling fashion.

The crimson ranger frowned and knocked his hand away.

"Face it," Shane started, "our Kool Aid's tasty."

_Yeah Hunter, you know you love us._

He acted tough, but Tori could tell he really appreciated having a team to count on.

"We have Kool Aid?" Dustin asked curiously, turning his head back and forth to look for the missing beverage.

"Whatever," Hunter mumbled, blowing it off, "_Uhh_…this show is awful."

And here they were, back at the beginning.

Blake nodded in agreement, talking around a mouthful of popcorn. "Even for a kid's show this is pretty bad. Shouldn't they be trying harder?"

Cam shook his head and went back to watching Dustin's search with Shane. "They're not trying to educate, they only want the ratings which means they have to cater to outlandishly small attention spans."

Tori nodded, it made sense.

"Is that why it's so sparkly?" Blake asked, motioning to the glitter that practically rained down with every "attack" the rangers made. Tori was glad none of their attacks were like that; she would've gone blind by now.

"It's partly educational," Shane insisted, craning his neck to look back at them, "that's how we learned how to morph."

"I thought that was from the comic books," Tori interjected, partly asking Dustin for validation, but mostly just stating it. Because she was right.

"Seriously, where is the Kool Aid?" Dustin asked, sounding a little aggravated. He ran a hand through his curls absently, tapping Shane's hand. He looked around startled to see what he had touched and poked it.

Shane wiggled his fingers in response.

"Same thing," the red ranger replied, completely ignoring Dustin's actions. Tori wiggled her fingers at him despite the fact he couldn't see it and earned a snort from Blake.

"They're probably both awful," Blake concluded, wiggling his fingers at her and Hunter took the opportunity to steal some more of their popcorn. When Blake turned to frown at him he simply wiggled his fingers in return.

To think last week he wouldn't even _joke_ with them.

This was better.

"There isn't any Kool Aid," Cam informed Dustin quietly, pulling his attention away from Shane's hand.

The yellow ranger pouted (for lack of better word) and slumped against him. "Aw man, that stuff is so _good_," he complained, but not wholeheartedly, eyes on the screen but still messing with Shane's hand.

Cam titled his head at the comment, "Its glorified sugar water."

Dustin spared him a glance, "Glorified sugar water with _color_." He pointed his index finger up and slowly turned it down to emphasize his point.

"Pardon my offense," Cam replied, shaking his head in sync with Shane.

Dustin nodded seriously. "You are pardoned," he declared solemnly, patting the techs chest before grabbing some more popcorn.

"You are weird," Blake decreed, and was immediately assaulted from all sides. Tori and Hunter smacked him on the head while Shane and Cam took the chance to hurl popcorn kernels at him. The navy ranger pulled his free hand up in an attempt to block the attacks and sputtered, "Hey-ey, don't waste the popcorn!"

Dustin, having missed his defense, looked back at that call in time to see no popcorn in action, so he grabbed a piece from Cam's bowl and hurled it at Blake for good measure, smiling when it made contact with his head. Blake frowned and Tori rubbed the side of his head comfortingly, but didn't make any attempt to hide her smirk.

He had asked for it.

"Keep going," Hunter urged, "it's more entertaining than this nonsense," he finished, motioning to the screen.

"It's not that bad!" Dustin insisted, making a face at him before returning to being glued to the show.

"What part about it is good?" Blake asked, scrunching his nose before going back to nursing his popcorn, playfully pulling the bowl away from Hunter when he went to grab for more.

He offered the bowl back after receiving a hearty glare.

"…their swords are nice," Dustin finally admitted after thinking about it. He then proceeded to swing his right hand about as though he were wielding an invisible sword occasionally making _shing_ sounds. Hunter, having completely given up on the show by now followed his movements with intense fascination.

"Ours are better," Shane grumbled, sparing the TV a brief glance before joining Dustin's growing audience.

"Thank you," Cam murmured, mostly to himself, but the quick look Shane gave him said he heard it.

"And I like his pants," Dustin announced, ending his fight by gesturing repeatedly at the character on the screen. Tori was grateful no one bothered pointing out that all the character's pants were the same (being that they were uniforms), the only difference was that the particular set he was pointing to belonged to the red ranger. The smug look on Shane's face announced that he had noticed that as well.

Out of the corner of her eye she could see that Hunter shared his feeling.

"…so the costuming department pretty much won this one," the crimson ranger deduced, letting his head roll back and rest on the top of the couch.

Perhaps the ceiling would provide better entertainment for him.

"Hooray pants," Blake mumbled sarcastically, squeezing Tori's arm.

She rested her head against his shoulder.

"They're cool pants!" Dustin exclaimed, breaking away from Cam and Shane long enough to look and Blake, jumping back slightly when he noticed his arm around Tori. He blinked for a few seconds, processing this new information, before glaring at the navy ranger and taking his index finger and forefinger and pointing at his eyes, finishing by pointing them at Blake. Shane joined in on his stare down, nodding seriously, narrowing his eyes at the short teen. Tori suppressed a giggle, because Dustin and Shane were the closest thing she had to brothers and the fact that they both had their eyes on Blake sort of…legitimized their relationship, even if they hadn't set any boundaries yet.

As Dustin settled back around, Shane changed his focus to Hunter, "The sword would be with the props department."

"Isn't that like a subdivision of costumes?" Blake asked, going for the question that had been on Tori's mind as well.

Must be a blue thing.

Shane shrugged and went back to looking at the screen, "You would have to ask the head of Props."

"Property manager," Cam supplied helpfully, grabbing a napkin off the coffee table and handing it to Dustin just before he began to wipe his hands on his pants. The curly haired teen ducked his head and accepted it.

"_That's_ what that means?" Shane asked, looking thoughtful, "Cool."

_Everyday is educational when you go to Ninja Ops._

Hunter waved his arm again, preempting the next flaw he discovered, "What's with this ten minutes to morph thing? Why doesn't the bad guy just shoot them while they're doing that?"

"Why don't Lothor's goons ever do that to us?" Tori responded, secretly wondering the same thing herself.

Why didn't they go after them while they were morphing?

"We're too fast," Blake answered, "we take like, five seconds max."

"Maybe they're stunned by our awesomeness," Dustin suggested, flourishing his napkin, "_And_ our good looks."

Cam, to her surprise, nodded in agreement. "Which is a completely separate thing from our awesomeness."

"Completely," the yellow ranger confirmed, shaking his head in an attempt to flip his hair. After a few tries he grabbed the side of his head, steadying it. Tori reached forward and patted him comfortingly.

Shane's face told her he had been about to do the same thing before she interrupted and she gave him a knowing smile before sitting back; he waved her off. "How did this show get so many seasons?" he asked, changing the subject, "They don't know the first thing about _real_ rangering."

"That would be why it's fiction," Cam marveled dryly, reaching up to jostle Dustin's hair. The yellow ranger hummed in appreciation.

"I thought it was funny," he announced, blinking at Cam innocently when he stopped. The tech sighed and resumed his petting.

Tori smiled at the exchange, "I think that part's supposed to be dramatic."

"No way dude," Dustin replied, practically purring.

Shane looked torn between being amused and being miffed.

"His friends just got shot," Blake offered, pointing to the screen where the civilians were whimpering on the ground.

In the ranger's defense they shouldn't have been there in the first place.

"But… they're all _flaily_," Dustin emphasized this by waving his outside arm drunkenly. He stopped quickly when he noticed Cam had halted his ministrations and rested his head back against his shoulder so they could be resumed.

Forget pictures, Tori would have to steal the security footage.

Hunter's arm was brought up once more, "No one acts like this!" he exclaimed, glaring at the people on the screen, "A piece of cardboard would be more relatable than these characters."

"A piece of cardboard would probably fight better too," Blake added, cringing as the good guys were yet again thrown around. It was almost pathetic how terrible they were. At least she, Shane, and Dustin had been able to fight. Not well, but they were miles ahead of these guys.

"They're hitting them!" Dustin insisted, bringing up his head slightly before remembering why it was down in the first place. He quickly returned it to its original position.

"Their _stunt_ doubles are hitting them," Hunter snarked, "The actors are just running around like buffoons."

"Balloons!" Dustin whispered enthusiastically, earning fresh confused stares from Blake and Hunter.

Cam sighed quietly, "This is not word association."

Shane blinked in confusion, "In what way does a buffoon relate to a balloon?"

Cam sparred him a look, halting for a moment when their eyes met, then shook his head and looked back to the TV, stating dryly, "It doesn't."

Blake exhaled loudly, "Worst. Show. Ever."

Dustin tensed at his words, and slowly drew his legs up to his chest, pushing his head harder against Cam. He wouldn't say it (because that wasn't his way) but all the insulting of the show felt like a personal attack on him because it had been his idea in the first place. Unfortunately, Blake and Hunter didn't know that yet.

Before she could assure him this was not the case, Shane broke in loudly proclaiming, "I like it." He smiled brightly at Dustin when the yellow ranger looked at him in question, and then proceeded to stare down the navy ranger.

Blake looked at him baffled until Tori poked him in the side, _hard,_ and he finally responded, "…me too."

Dustin looked back at him, completely bewildered, "You just said-"

"I'm a liar," Blake declared, sounding sincere.

After a pause Hunter added, "…it could be worse."

Dustin cheered up immediately, "Everyone agrees with me!"

"Tori hasn't…" Blake started, but Tori cut him off.

"I agree."

Dustin pumped his fist into the air. "I win!" he smiled proudly.

"There's nothing to win!" Blake professed, exasperated.

A mischievous smile lit Shane's face. "You could always fix that," he observed, wagging his eyebrows suggestively.

"…What did I just get roped into?" the navy ranger asked quietly after some hesitation.

"Ice cream run," Shane explained, earning a whoop from Dustin.

Blake tried to figure out how those two things connected in his head. "What?"

"I support this decision," Cam said, watching in amusement as Dustin did a happy dance.

Hunter pumped his fist as well, decreeing, "Seconded."

Blake glared at his brother. "Traitor."

Hunter smirked at him happily, "Just make sure you get chocolate."

"And strawberry!" Dustin added, halting his dance.

Blake made a face, "Ech, strawberry."

This did not sit well with Dustin, "Don't rag on the berry man!" he urged loudly, jumping up so he could look the navy ranger in the eye. "The berry'll take you down," he finished, squinting his eyes at him ridiculously in an attempt thoroughly convey his point.

"…sure," Blake said when it became apparent Dustin wasn't going to move until he replied. Satisfied with his response, the other smiled brightly and sat back down, ducking back under Cam's arm.

Blake turned to look at her, "You want anything special?"

Tori tried not to glow under the attention. "Naw, I'm okay," she ensured, squeezing his hand for added effect.

Shane made a sound of distaste, "Less with the couple stuff, more with the ice cream stuff."

"Off with you!" Hunter added, waving his brother away.

Blake gave her one last smile before grumbling. "I'm going, I'm going," and quickly exiting the room.

Shane leaned back against the couch, please with himself, "Team bonding, there's nothing like it."

"He's gonna miss the end," Dustin murmured, voice downtrodden. He was actually sad about this.

Hunter stiffened and sent questioning looks between his watch and the TV, "It isn't over yet?"

"Hour long premier," Cam replied, plopping his now empty popcorn bowl on to the coffee table.

Shane grinned at him unapologetically.

Hunter slumped against the couch in defeat, "Oh joy."

"It could get better," Dustin offered, leaning over Cam to look the blond ranger in the eye. Cam tensed again, turning his head to the left to get more distance. Shane, seeing his… "dilemma", if it could be called that, reached over and gently pushed Dustin back into his spot. The yellow ranger gave him an odd look but complied easily.

Maybe Cam just wasn't used to Dustin's excessive touching. But if Shane knew that why was he adding to the problem?

It didn't make sense.

"Their uniforms can't." Shane argued, ignoring Tori's questioning gaze.

"…yeah, costume department failed there," Hunter agreed, narrowing his eyes in thought.

So he caught it too.

Dustin clapped in concurrence. "Their helmets are funny," he stated, shaking his head in despair.

Luckily their helmets were not so tacky.

There was a large arm gesture from Hunter. "And what's with the super modes on the first episode?" he groused, pointing to the zord combat, "It's the first episode; you've got to earn that stuff."

"They should have made them slay a dragon or something," Dustin mused, bouncing slightly in place.

He's the only one who would be excited by that.

"Don't say that," Tori frowned, "it'll jinx us."

She did _not_ want to deal with a dragon anytime soon.

"Why?" Dustin asked innocently, "it would be _awesome_ to fight a dragon." He concluded this by throwing several jabs, ducking around left and right. Of course he would box the dragon.

Cam shook his head fondly, "You say that _now_."

…this dragon thing was probably going to happen now, just because of this conversation.

"Cam downloaded our sword upgrades," Shane reminded, pointing at her knowingly.

She frowned and resisted the urge to stick her tongue out at him, "Not during our first fight."

He shrugged, "It was close."

During the run of their conversation Dustin had nudged Cam's wrapped foot, and leaned close to his ear to whisper, "Do you need more ice?"

Cam shook his head without looking at him before replying in equally low decibels, "It's fine Dustin."

But being that this was Ninja Ops and it was filled with, you know, _ninja's_, everyone else in the room had heard the exchange. Tori wasn't sure how everyone else felt about it, but she saw this as an opportunity to get some answers.

Hunter, being a great mind that thought alike, beat her to it. "How'd you get that anyway?" he asked, motioning to Cam's injured foot.

Cam shrugged, "I fell."

Way to be vague.

Hunter didn't let up, "Where?"

"In a place of falling," Cam replied nonchalantly, trying his best to sound incredibly uninterested.

Dustin, Tori noted, had stilled himself as soon as this conversation had started, and was currently willing himself into a stone like state. Either he wanted to disappear, or he was trying to listen better.

Or it was both.

Tori pressed the matter anyway. "You're not team bonding," she joked, wagging her finger at Cam.

"Lay off guys, if he doesn't want to talk about it he doesn't have to talk about it," Shane defended, choosing to break his silence.

_So that's why he hasn't said anything._

"Says the guy who knows," Tori baited, hiding her frustration at being left out. She was the third musketeer, she should know these things.

"He knows?" Hunter asked her, pointing at the ranger in question.

Tori smiled but continued, cutting to the chase, "Your skateboarding thing failed didn't it?"

"What skateboarding thing?" Hunter asked, searching for anybody who was willing to answer.

"Yes," Cam replied in monotone, "it failed, let's move on." He ruffled Dustin's hair again but received no reaction.

Hunter decided to try Tori again, "Did he try to skateboard?"

Tori nodded, "So the rumors say."

"Dude-" Hunter started, leaning forward so he could see Cam's face.

"What's done is done," Cam interrupted, pulling his arm away from Dustin. "Who wants more popcorn?"

"Me!" Dustin responded, eagerly taking the distraction and jumping to his feet, helping the tech up before grabbing all the empty bowls. In record time they had vacated the room.

"He tried to skateboard?" Hunter asked again, looking at Shane

The red ranger shrugged, "He wasn't that bad, actually. He just took it too fast."

_He wasn't that bad?_

When Tori had told him about Dustin's plan he had been livid, yelling about how terrible and irresponsible the idea had been just before he stormed off and now he was actually _defending_ them?

_Someone _didn't feel like sharing with the class.

"Where did he get that idea in the first place?" Tori asked for Hunter's sake, attempting to get him in the loop.

"Dustin, probably," Shane replied, sinking into the side of the couch.

Hunter stared at the door thoughtfully. "What's going on with them?" he asked suddenly, addressing what had been on Tori's mind the whole day.

Shane furrowed his brows in confusion, jolted by the sudden change in subject, "What?"

"Them," Hunter repeated, indicated where Dustin and Cam had been seated.

The red ranger nodded, finally catching on to who he was addressing, "Nothing."

Hunter stared at him disbelievingly, "Sure."

"Seriously dude," Shane repeated, "it's nothing."

The blond teen wasn't buying it, and to be honest, neither was Tori. "So you guys are normally this clingy?"

"We're a team," Shane replied, frowning at what Hunter was implying.

"Look, I don't judge-" The crimson ranger began, holding his hands up in surrender, but Shane cut him off.

"What are you saying?" he asked, looking legitimately confused.

Okay, so maybe he hadn't caught on.

"We're a team now right," Hunter explained, "that means you can trust us," he finished while motioning to himself and Tori.

Shane tensed but didn't spill. "I know that."

"We've got your back," Tori added, hoping that Shane would share what was on his mind.

"Yeah," he murmured, "I got that too."

Hunter shared a look with Tori before asking one last time, "So…nothing?"

"Nope," came the solid answer.

The crimson ranger stared at him blankly, no emotions on his face before he finally shrugged and said, "Okay."

…What?

That was it?

They weren't going to try to dig for more?

Okay, Hunter had done most of the digging but Tori wanted to be on the in for this one and-

"Trade," Hunter declared, hopping up from the couch.

Shane looked at him dumbly. "What?"

"Couch," Hunter continued like it was the plainest thing in the world, "you can take it."

Shane began to shake his head, "I don't want-"

"I insist," the other cut off, making a sweeping gesture with his arm to offer his spot.

Shane, at a loss for what to do gave in and took his seat,"…Okay."

Hunter smiled triumphantly and took the red ranger's old spot just as Cam and Dustin reentered the room, bowls refilled with popcorn. They both gave confused looks but Cam shrugged it off first, resuming his old position before redistributing the bowls. Dustin on the other hand looked torn between sitting by Cam or sitting by Shane. Tori spared him his agony by glaring him into submission (She loved him but Blake was staying by her). He smiled; sent Shane and apologetic looked and took his original seat, leaning against Cam.

Tori had thought the upset was over, but Hunter had other ideas as he mimicked Shane's old position to a T and draped his arm around Cam, casually eating a handful of popcorn. Unlike the first time Dustin immediately recognized the new hand and poked it, receiving a wiggle of fingers in return.

Shane spent the rest of the even glaring at the back of the crimson ranger's head.

* * *

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Endnotes:

Merci to Rogue Ranger and JDTB90 for taking the time to review, it really makes my day. And you know, if I know you like a certain thing, I can do it more often.

Just saying.

Also, added thanks to Rogue Ranger for helping me come up with the name for the fake Power Ranger series.

The dialogue for this chapter was ridiculously fun to write, I had a ball with full-team bonding time. Hopefully there will be more of it to come.

So why is this chapter here?

So we have one episode that centers around Total Trek, which I'm assuming happens on a Saturday because it's a freaking marathon, and then the next episode has a demo that takes place at three, so I'm assuming _that_ happens on a Saturday as well (because no one's school gets out that early) so that means a week went by with no comment and that didn't sit well with me. It just so happened that this was the week that Power Rangers Samurai premiered, and I couldn't help but think "What would power rangers think about power rangers the TV show?", and then this happened.

I didn't get to see the full first episode, I missed the first half, and I wasn't all that impressed with the second, but I'm sure it wasn't as bad as my fake "Alpha Squadron" was, I just like how Hunter and Blake kept complaining the whole time.

So…yeah.

Until next time.


	15. Let's go to the Movies

Chapter 15

Let's go to the Movies

I don't own Annie, the movie

Takes place before "Pork Chopped"

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-:-:-:-:-:-

* * *

Somehow TV night had designated itself to be a magnificent, warm, affectionate experience that swelled Cam's heart with what could only be described as joy while simultaneously being the greatest rehearsal of absolute disgust and detestation of his very being. To say it was a jarring experience did it no justice.

Being an individual of immense intelligence who generally kept himself occupied by running through multiple thought processes at once it was becoming gradually harder to simply _not_ think about it.

It was an elephant, gargantuan and unpleasant, standing resolutely in the middle of his mind and it wasn't going to leave any time soon. For the moment he had settled for focusing on the wall next to it, but that would only last for so long.

Cam was currently lamenting his status while observing Dustin and Shane clean up the mess (not large, but still present) that had been created during movie night. Dustin had stayed after the others had trickled away, insisting Cam shouldn't have to do any kind of cleaning on his ankle (remnants of guilt no doubt) and Shane, being Dustin's shadow, had moved to remain and help as well. Whether he was speeding or hindering the process was still up in the air.

Cam had been positioned (gently) by the other rangers on a recliner they had neglected to use earlier because of it's off to the side positioning, allowing him a clear view of Dustin and Shane combing the couch and area surrounding it for stray popcorn. He had informed them that he had vacuums readily available for such purposes, but Dustin was adamant on doing it this way and Shane, not particularly caring either way, naturally agreed with Dustin.

To be honest Cam couldn't help but feel a little at odds with Shane. There was never any question when it came to Tori and Dustin because things had simply fallen into place with them, but with the red ranger it had always been different. Cam supposed after much deliberation that the reason for this was because in a way they were both in charge of the team. Separate aspects, but the power was still there. Shane was the leader when they were in the field and maintained them emotionally off of it, but Cam took care of all things technical (which was a great amount) so they couldn't fall into a leader-subordinate relationship (it wasn't a big difference with the others but that didn't exclude it from existence altogether) because it simply didn't fit what they had.

They respected each other, inside and outside of combat, but when it came to simply… "hanging out", things still remained incredibly awkward.

If Cam had to pick a reason as to why, he would have to say that they weren't comfortable with the idea of being…vulnerable (that might be the word) around each other. It wasn't that (at least in his case, he couldn't speak for Shane) they feared appearing weak, and it wasn't pride, it was their way of…supporting each other, respecting each other. They put up their best because the other always did so. As a result, it was difficult to be completely at ease.

Cam was still working on fixing this problem.

Shane seemed to be aware of it as well, and had decided to address it in the manner _he_ was most comfortable with.

And this is how Cam came to be physically tag-teamed from both sides.

Again, wonderful and awful at the same time.

It almost came as a relief when Shane and Hunter switched places, even when the crimson ranger had opted to get in on the "team bonding" it still hadn't been as aggravating/enjoyable (enjoyable, the very thought made him shudder with despair) as it had been with Shane.

Then of course he had to deal with the very fact that it hadn't been as aggravating/enjoyable as it had been with Shane.

…or Dustin.

Cam was currently chalking that up to not knowing the crimson ranger as well. He wondered how long he was willing to believe that lie.

…as long as he was willing to ignore the elephant.

Then, of course, it was inferred that his feelings were only natural and par for the course, which, if he was going to be honest, they weren't.

_Stop thinking about it._

Right. What was going on?

Cleaning.

He brought his focus back to the remaining guests.

Dustin was on his hands and knees by the coffee table, face close to the ground as he searched intently for his prey, talking adamantly. "We should watch next week's episode together too," he snatched up a piece in triumph, tossing it into a nearby bowl. "Oh, and the week after that," he popped his head up and looked between him and Shane excitedly. "We could make it a tradition!"

_But it was so **bad.**_

Shane's face was out of his view (as he was ducked behind the couch), but he probably felt the same way. "Some of us have to study," he replied, grunting in exertion. It sounded like he was digging under the couch. Cam hadn't thought they had thrown that many pieces. Then again, he had spent a majority of the time staring steadfastly forward.

Dustin frowned in Shane's general direction and resumed his search, "Well," he started, crawling forward. "on the days we don't _have_ to do that. Come on, you had fun."

That was one way of putting it.

"It was okay," Shane admitted, finally coming into view. He jumped over the top of the couch, bowl in hand, and began to comb over the well-worn piece of furniture for loose kernels.

"You don't even have to watch the show," Dustin continued as though Shane had given the most positive of responses, "we can just be together."

Cam had to admit, the quality time they spent without being distracted by attacks or saving civilians was quite enjoyable.

"Team bonding every week," Shane summarized, glancing sideways at Dustin with fondness. Cam hadn't studied the red ranger as closely as he should have, but he was beginning to get the feeling that look was reserved for Dustin.

_**Stop thinking about it.**_

Dustin nodded excitedly, motioning broadly with his arm and nearly knocking over his popcorn bowl. "Team bonding every week!" he echoed, volume multiplied."Guaranteed," he added, before sitting back happily. He blinked before he remembered he had a bigger audience and turned, looking at Cam expectantly.

"The idea has promise," the tech admitted, nodding slowly.

That was all Dustin needed. "Awesome! I'll tell Tori and Blake," he exclaimed, before picking up the remaining popcorn pieces that were on the ground. "You can get Hunter," he continued, gesturing loosely to Shane while continuing his work.

_Interesting_.

Dustin appeared to be subtlety encouraging Shane and Hunter's new budding friendship, egging them into more one-on-one interaction with each other. He wasn't the smartest guy on the team, but Dustin was becoming by far one of the craftiest. It was only a greater credit to him that he wasn't aware that he was doing it. Well, it was either that or the yellow ranger was avoiding Hunter, but that option didn't add up seeing as nothing detrimental had happened to their relationship. At least, nothing that Cam had picked up on.

Still…

He shared a look with Shane, the red ranger sensing his doubts. Cam shook his head in return; it wasn't something they needed to address right now.

Shane nodded in return before focusing his attention back on Dustin, "Okay."

Dustin smiled happily at both of them and went back to looking over the living room. There wasn't a lot left to do, with all the popcorn cleaned up Cam just needed to move all the bowls and cups into the kitchen for washing. He would do the dishes tomorrow.

_Dishes, meh._

He gripped the armrests of the recliner and pulled himself to the edge of the seat. "It's late," he informed them, motioning to the clock, "I can finish this up."

Dustin was across the room in a second, intercepting his hand before he reached for his crutches. "No way dude," he said resolutely, shaking his head.

Shane smiled calmly, but his eyes were stubborn, "Really Cam, we're almost done."

_And that's why I can finish up._

He wasn't incapable of doing simple tasks, he wasn't going to break. Not anymore than he already had, at least.

He frowned and tried to delicately shake Dustin's hand off.

"Won't your parents get worried?" he asked. His effort to extricate his hand was met with a glare, and Dustin squeezed his hand a little harder.

Shane shrugged and began piling up the bowls, "Mine think I'm studying at Dustin's"

_And Dustin's mom thinks he's at your house?_

"My mom's working late," Dustin added, gently pulling Cam's crutches out of reach with an apologetic look on his face.

Cam resisted the urge to glare when he realized he had processed such information before.

When was it?

"She was working late Friday too," he stated, and immediately regretted it. That hadn't been the way he wanted to start this conversation.

Dustin tensed and let go of his hand, looking at the floor with a smile plastered on his face that didn't quite reach his eyes. "Well, she works late a lot," he mumbled. He leaned the crutches back against Cam's chair and quickly moved about the room gathering cups. "She's a hard working lady," he finished, this time meeting both of their eyes.

Were it not for the earlier lapse in demeanor Cam would say the trailing comment was delivered in Dustin's usual cheerful fashion. However, he and Shane knew better.

But this wasn't the time.

He chose his words carefully. "I didn't say she wasn't," he replied in a calm voice, not softer, Dustin would notice if he was placating him. He had to fight to not hold his hands up, it was a calming gesture that the yellow ranger was well aware of, and Cam didn't want him to feel that they _needed _him…calm?

When did everything get so confusing?

In the precious seconds Cam was over-analyzing the situation, some of the tension left Dustin's shoulders and his smile became more genuine, feeling, no doubt (as Cam and Shane did) as though he had dodged the bullet.

Dustin grabbed the bowls out of Shane's hand. "I'll go wash these," he professed brightly before ducking out of the room a little more speedily then necessary.

Cam let out a sigh and rubbed the side of his head, cursing himself for the slip up. Dustin's family (aside from his sister) was not a subject he spoke much of, and while Cam had never witnessed any obvious signs of abuse (physical or…sexual) he couldn't help but feel there was something wrong with Dustin's home situation. He didn't have enough data for him to give a concrete answer, but he had a strong theory.

Until he was sure though, he had settled for giving the yellow ranger all the support he needed.

He couldn't completely drown out the nagging voice in the back of his mind that told him he secretly loved it.

He was terrible.

"You worried?" the sound of Shane's voice brought him out of his thoughts; he glanced up to see the red ranger emulating his concern. Of course Shane would have noticed, Cam would have prodded him for answers if Dustin's defensive reaction had been aimed solely at him. However, Dustin was avoiding both of them, meaning that Shane was as much in the dark as he was.

"Yes," he responded, searching the red ranger for answers.

Realization lit up in Shane's eyes and he shook his head. "Me too," he added.

So they both had nothing.

Cam shook off his frustration. "I'll keep an eye on it," he promised.

It was an unnecessary comment, but it made him feel better.

"Okay," the other nodded in acceptance.

And that, for now, was the end of that.

Shane sat down; electing to sit on the side of the couch that was closest to Cam. He ran a hand through his hair, gathering his thoughts, before deciding to break the silence, "I was thinking…"

"What?" Cam interrupted.

Shane gave him a startled look as though he hadn't expected it (which was bubkis (Dustin's word) because he was baiting him), before allowing a small smile to spread over his face.

Cam fidgeted uncomfortably.

"You weren't that bad," Shane answered, reaching his arms up and stretching before plopping back against the couch.

Unfortunately Cam missed the actions because his mind pretty much froze at Shane's comment.

_What._

_The._

_Hell._

He's ashamed to say that his immediate thoughts on _that_ particular statement were naive and immature (which was stupid because nothing had _happened_ to warrant them to be as such), adequate for an average high schooler but never for someone of his standings and his cursed figurative elephant had gone from simply standing in the room to doing an elaborate fan dance with rave lights a blazing.

Being that he had no previous experience like this to draw a response from he settled for just asking for the clarification he needed and hoped his face didn't catch on fire in the meantime.

"…what?" he asked, feeling proud that he managed to keep his voice steady.

Luckily Shane had tried to be nonchalant about this conversation (a curse that Hunter had started) and had taken to staring at the coffee table in wait of his response and had missed his episode of panic.

"At the park," he clarified, looking back at Cam, "with a little practice you could really shred it."

It still took Cam a few seconds to figure out what he meant. He must have been blinking stupidly because Shane decided to take pity on him and motioned to his foot.

Oh…right, the whole skateboard thing.

He took a breath and pushed his glasses back up his nose. "I only did that as an experiment," he replied calmly, feeling a bit like his old self.

Shane raised a brow at him but continued, "What do you do to relax?"

Why did people find that _so_ important?

Did they ever stop to think that he might _enjoy_ doing his work?

…okay, so he didn't always but someone had to do it and he didn't have time for distractions.

Like elephants.

…_why?_

"You know," he started, ignoring his internal bout, "Dustin's asked me the same question."

_So maybe you should shut up._

Shane frowned as though he had said it and wagged a finger at him, "You're avoiding the question."

_**You're** avoiding the question._

…Now he was just being petty.

"I'm busy," he insisted tersely, grabbing his crutches.

He would go help Dustin in the kitchen, speed up the process so he could have some time to think.

"I know," Shane coaxed, not bothering to hide _his_ placating, "But everyone needs a little stress release," he caught Cam's intent to get up and quickly went into action, gently tugging his crutches away (despite popular belief he _could_ move without those) and sat down on the armrest of the chair, throwing an arm around Cam's shoulder and more or less pinning him in place. The tech knew at least three ways to get out of this easily, but decided that such tactics would only serve to alienate him more. Besides, if Shane was actually trying to reach out to him the least he could do is listen.

"Get to the point," he grumbled, narrowing his eyes slightly.

He didn't say he had to be happy about it.

Shane smiled, "Let me teach you how to shred." Cam looked at him disbelievingly, "We'll take it slow," he assured.

_I'm sure we will_.

…he wondered if Shane would think it odd for him to call a time out so that he could bang his head against the wall a few times.

…probably.

"Are you serious?" Cam asked, pitch rising slightly.

Shane didn't catch it. "Deadly," he smirked, "As soon as that thing heals up I can start showing you the ropes."

"That thing" being his ankle.

No.

No. No. No. No. nononononononononono-

He had stuff to do, it was important, he couldn't just…

_Ah!_

He started to try and express these feelings, "I don't…"

"Cam," Shane broke in, staring at him hard.

_And_…that was it. Just "Cam".

…in all honesty that's all he needed to say.

This was an olive branch, Cam needed to take it. Besides, this way Dustin's gear wouldn't go to waste.

"…it was a little fun," he admitted, earning a smile from Shane. "Before I wiped out," he amended.

_That_ hadn't been fun.

Shane laughed, "Ate it," he corrected, patting Cam on the shoulder, "surfers wipe out."

Cam shrugged, "I was unaware the verb was exclusive."

He was pretty sure it could be applied either way.

Ridiculously proud worked well on Shane's face, "Learn something new everyday."

_Indeed_.

-:-:-:-:-:-

-:-:-:-:-:-

-:-:-:-:-:-

The internet was a wonderful thing.

In Hunter's opinion, at least.

Truly, there was no other way to put it. You wanted something, you wanted to _know_ something, someone, anything at all, you just had to type it in, hit search and answers came flooding down on you in never ending waves. Sure, not all of them were going to pertain to the particular something/someone/anything that you happened to be searching for but somewhere in the middle of it all the answer was going to appear.

It was quick, it was fast, and it was incredibly convenient.

So that's why when Hunter hit the hour mark of perusing the local movie theater's website to get tickets for the Martial Arts film festival that was showing Fists of Fire 2 he was just about ready to go Thunder Ranger on his computer.

Seriously, who designed this website? It had the worst layout in the world. Most places would _want_ you to spend money but _**no**__,_ not this place. This place had links to it's history, mission, vision, viewing history, reviews, newspaper articles that had even the slightest mention of the theater, menu for the snack bar, accommodations for meetings and birthdays, ticket _prices,_ even a link that described the festival he _desperately _wanted to attend, but nowhere (and he would know because he had looked, thoroughly) _**nowhere**_ could he find a place to actually _buy_ tickets.

It wouldn't be so bad if he could just go up the theater to make his purchase (he always felt better about buying things in person anyway, using cash) but this tiny theater was insistent on stepping into the technological age so it only offered the tickets online. That was, if you could find them.

Hunter could not.

What he would do for a swarm of Kelzaks, nothing relieved stress better than the satisfying "thunk" that emitted every time he smashed his foot into a one of their faces.

And frying them? That was even better.

But because of the fact he actually _wanted _them to show up, he knew it wasn't going to happen. The next attack would probably happen in the middle of one of his shifts at work or while he was in the shower or something equally inconvenient. Kelzaks, evil to the very last detail.

The sound of the key scraping against the lock indicated that Blake was done with his shift at Storm Chargers (he was late by about fifteen minutes so that meant that he had stopped to flirt with Tori). Tori, that poor soul. If Blake continued at his normal rate he _might_ ask her out just about the time they finished saving the world from Lothor. He loved his brother, but his ideas of taking it slow made a snail look like speed racer. It was his way of respecting Tori, and also his way of ensuring he didn't get hurt _just_ in case he had misread any signals.

Hunter had told him time and time again to just ask her _out_ already, because it was really starting to get sad, but Blake was insistent.

Slow and steady.

So, like he said, poor Tori.

"You're late," he pointed out gruffly, not bothering to look up from their worn out laptop that was in their sparsely decorated, sad excuse for a living room.

He already knew the reason why, but this was the way they usually ended up greeting each other.

At least when _he_ was late it was a surprise.

"I was talking to Tori," Blake replied and the sound of his jacket and keys being placed on the wall hook preempted his crossing the room and leaning on the back of Hunter's chair. "What are you doing?"

Hunter glared harder at the screen, willing the internet to cooperate. "I'm _trying_ to get us tickets to the Martial Arts Film festival."

They had been talking about it for over two weeks now. Fists of Fire had been one of their favorite movies and they had never gotten a chance to see the sequel. As soon as Blake heard about the festival Hunter had started seeking out tickets, eager to get some brother bonding time. Between work, training, and ranger duties they didn't get enough of that. Unless sleeping in the same room counted as bonding. Ultimately, it didn't.

Blake snickered beside him, hands kneading his shoulders, "I assume that's not going very well."

_No, it's going **wonderful. **In fact I got the ticket's hours ago; I just kept staring at the screen because I **love** the idea of damaging my eyesight. It makes me happy._

He settled on a response that was less of an attack on Blake's stupid comment. "I wanna find the guy who made this website and set his house on fire."

Actually he was leaning more towards murder but Sensei might look down on that just a little.

"That bad?" Blake asked, choosing to make himself less of a nuisance (and guaranteeing his continued uninjured state of being) by continuing his massage, pressing into Hunter's shoulders.

"Worse," Hunter grumbled, triple clicking the mouse angrily when his selected link refused to load.

So what if it wouldn't speed up the process? It made him feel better.

"Let me take a look," Blake demanded, halting his ministrations. Hunter growled but stepped aside, looking forward to his brother's imminent failure. He was willing to admit it wasn't a nice thing to hope for but with all his snarkiness Blake needed to be taken down a few pegs, and if any website could do it, this was the one.

Also it was a good substitution to the Kelzaks.

Hunter stretched lazily, kicking his legs back to get the blood circulated again. "I've already been through this entire website," he lectured, popping his neck, "and I'm telling you there is absolutely no page that-"

"Got it," Blake interrupted. Hunter almost didn't hear him because of his rant, he had it all thought out and everything. He had intended to end it by insulting Blake's intelligence or something of the like. Instead here he was, blinking in wonderment before he bent closer to the screen to see that yes, Blake had found it.

"Top right corner," his brother continued, smug face on, "bright green box."

It was all Hunter could do to not smash Blake's head into the laptop screen.

…It wasn't _his_ fault he hadn't seen it.

"I hate you," he groused, smacking the back of his brother's head anyway.

_That_ was for the smug face.

Blake's smile widened as he casually brushed pretend dust off of his shoulders, "Don't hate the player, hate the game."

"Whatever," Hunter grunted, pushing on Blake's shoulder. "Move."

His brother appeased him, getting out of the way so he could order the tickets (he had started this, he was going to end this). He had expected at least a little more gloating (because how could he have missed a lime green box anyway?) or maybe a little more massaging (that was more of a hopeless wish) but instead Blake seemed to settle on pacing back and forth behind him, awkwardly shifting his weight whenever he came to a halt. This was a bright neon sign that showed he was thinking about something that made him nervous.

So it was something to do with Tori.

If he asked him for girl advice one more time Hunter was going to sling him out a window.

No joke.

Blake halted his walk suddenly and cleared his throat. "Hey, ah…could you get an extra ticket?"

Oh, good, not girl talk. Well, not _girl _talk, talk _about_ girls…

Whatever.

"Would this extra ticket be for Tori?" he asked, copying Blake's smug tone from earlier as he glanced back at him.

The navy ranger frowned, not appreciating the irony. "Is there something wrong with that?" he asked, crossing his arms defensively.

There was no way Hunter would have anything wrong with that because this was his brother, but something about girls tended to make Blake stupid.

Hunter informed him of this delicately.

For him.

"No," he responded, rolling his eyes, "but you should know it's not really a date when your brother tags along," he _did not_ feel like chaperoning. "Unless of course you two don't want me to sit with you," he wasn't fond of the idea, but he was willing to go with it for Blake's sake.

"What?" his brother responded looking confused. "No, it's not a date," he insisted, collapsing on a bean bag chair that and waving his hands, "I just want to hang out with her."

Hang out?

Poor Tori.

He didn't bother arguing about it because Blake wasn't going to budge on the issue, so he settled for scoffing sarcastically.

It was a thing he did very well.

"O-kay," he taunted, turning back around to amend the ticket order. Being the third wheel didn't sound like the best of times but this was Fists of Fire 2, and he wasn't ducking out on it. Tori would just have to deal, for now.

Hunter would make it up to her later.

There was a repetitive tapping noise emanating from Blake's general direction, a pen he was clicking against the window sill, another subconscious thinking habit. "You should invite someone," he threw out, interrupting his repetitive beating.

"I did," Hunter replied casually, "I invited you."

He knew what Blake meant, but he had really meant this to be a brother trip. Sure, friend time (or girlfriend time to the ever-protesting Blake) was fun but it wasn't the same. Also, he hadn't had very much time to reevaluate his options.

"I don't count," Blake asserted, moving the pen from the window to his leg.

Hunter scoffed (see, he was great at it), "Last I checked-"

"One of the other guys," Blake clarified, not waiting for him to spin a yarn. If allowed Hunter would've just kept going until the matter was dropped. Unfortunately that strategy had stopped working on Blake year's ago.

It never hurt to try.

"No," Hunter pressed, "no way am I getting tangled up in that mess."

He wasn't sure _what_ was going on there, and he didn't want to get mixed up with it until he had some kind of clarification.

Blake's tapping stopped, "What mess?"

_Are you serious_?

"Are you blind?" Hunter asked, looking at his brother incredulously. He knew Blake was a little Tori-struck but they had been less than a foot away from them on Monday, and it wasn't like the show (that they were now going to watch every week) was exactly super enthralling.

For goodness sake it had been going on _right in front of them._

"What?" Blake repeated, sounding genuinely confused.

Hunter shook his head and continued typing in information, "You're hopeless."

Blake, unsatisfied with his lack of answer got up and repositioned himself behind Hunter, leaning over his shoulder to look him in the eye. "What mess?" he repeated, starting to look a little annoyed.

Hunter sighed and started ticking off on his fingers, "Shane…Cam…Dustin," well, if he thought about it, "Actually, I'm not sure about Dustin…"

He seemed like the kind of guy who was affectionate to everybody. At least, the people he cared about.

Hunter could understand that.

Blake looked hard at him one more time before giving up on getting his answer, rocking back on his heels. "Then invite _him_, seeing as he's not involved in this figurative mess you don't feel like talking about," he finished with obnoxious finger quotes and a dramatic sigh.

Hunter rolled his eyes, "If you didn't notice it you don't get to talk about it."

He didn't want to get Blake involved in it either. Not talking about it would protect everyone from him committing acts of unknowing stupidity.

"Fine," Blake huffed, walking back to his chair. "Hey whatever it is, there are three of them, so they can't all be taken."

_Assuming I'm interested._

Hunter had long discovered he was bisexual, having no particular preference to either sex. It made sense to him, if someone made him happy then they made him happy, and he wasn't going to discount them just because of their sex. Blake readily accepted that, encouraging him to go after…well, anybody. He just wanted him happy. Unfortunately this also meant that he tried to set Hunter up with anything that had a pulse so long as it wasn't an animal.

He was bisexual, but that didn't mean he was without standards. He was still working on getting that through Blake's head.

Hunter tilted his head to show he was listening, "I guess you have a point."

"Of course I do," Blake replied, sounding pleased to have essential set up a double date. Or "double hang-out" in his book.

That was, if Dustin said yes.

"Okay," Hunter finished, checking his email account for the order confirmation, "four tickets ordered, they should be here on Friday."

Just in the knick of time.

"Way to cut it close," Blake joked sarcastically, standing up from his bean bag with a groan and heading towards their kitchenette.

Hunter scowled at his back. "Shut it Blake," he growled, copying his brother's movements and joining him in the kitchen. With all of his computer troubles he had forgotten about eating and now his stomach was protesting tenfold.

They were halfway through making their sandwiches when Blake broke the silence with a casual question, "What do you think I should wear?"

Hunter groaned and shook his head quickly, slathering on some mustard at high speed and finishing his sandwich. "No, no," he muttered, "We're not doing this conversation."

Ever.

_We are not having this conversation **ever**._

The weather wasn't _that_ bad; he could eat lunch on the balcony and avoid this issue completely.

Plan prepared, he grabbed a soda out of the fridge and ducked out, door shutting just before he heard Blake's confused, "What?" call out behind him.

* * *

-:-:-:-:-:-

* * *

Endnotes:

I know, I know, I'm stalling, but I _will_ get to Pork Chopped.

…eventually. I'm not sure how to tackle that one yet.

Anyhow, I would like to give a big thanks to JDTB90, Rogue Ranger, ValkyrieNyght, and LadyLove92! Four reviews guys, I am ecstatic! (No sarcasm, I'm really pumped about this)

Also, thanks for the heads-up on the mistakes in chapter 12, I went back and fixed the one's I could find. (Feel free to point out any other errors).

Now, onto the chapter.

I feel I should make one thing clear, of the two Thunder brothers I would have to say that Blake is actually my most favorite. Truly, this is a fact. I _think_ that might be why I tend to poke fun at him so much.

Just wanted to clear that up.

Also they never specify where _any_ of them live (with the exception of Cam) so I went ahead and gave Hunter and Blake a run down apartment for the moment. I might move them to Ninja Ops in the future, still trying to decide because let's be honest, working at Storm Chargers can't get them enough to support themselves indefinitely.

Or maybe it can, again, still thinking about it.

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!

Until next time.


	16. Agony

Chapter 16

Agony

I don't own Into the Woods… still

Takes place during "Pork Chopped"

* * *

-:-:-:-:-:-

* * *

There was a fine art to tinkering around a motocross bike. At least, for Dustin there was a fine art. Sure in Tori's opinion it looked a lot like he just took everything apart until he found the broken piece and fixed it, but there was a lot more to it than that.

Okay, so there wasn't, but how was he supposed to fix the broken part if everything else was in the way? Besides, the entire machine worked better when he put it back together anyway so it was all good right? It may not be the standard practice for most bike mechanics but it's been working for Dustin so far and Kelly didn't complain so long as he got the bikes done on time. It was like working on the coolest puzzle he could ever imagine, except when he was done you could ride the puzzle for miles on end over dirt and water and then when you were done doing _that_ you could just look at it.

Bikes were much cooler than puzzles.

Just sayin'.

It was fun, and he was good at it. Whenever he was working on a bike he felt like he was at the top of his game, focusing so intently on his work that he tended to blur everything else out until he was in his own little world (at least when Shane wasn't there to keep him company), and it was just him and the bike and sheer awesomeness.

He got a lot of good thinking done that way.

And that was why he didn't immediately catch on when Hunter came up and started a conversation with him. At least, he assumed there was a conversation going on, like he said, he wasn't too sure. He had only noticed the other ranger when he reached over to grab a certain tool and was blocked by a solid clothed wall. A solid, clothed, warm wall that felt a lot like a person. With abs.

Startled, he pulled his hand back and looked over to see that Hunter had been leaning against the table right beside him, and was giving him an incredulous look.

"Did you catch any of that?" the crimson ranger asked, quirking an eyebrow.

Dustin wished he could do that, he had tried before but he only ended up lifting both of them and looking really surprised. He had even tried holding one of his eyebrows down with his hand while lifting the other one, but that hadn't turned out so well.

Hunter's continued stare reminded him that he was supposed to answer.

"…No?" He replied, wracking his brain in case he might have caught something.

Yeah, he had nothing.

Hunter nodded slowly, looking over the pieces that lay scattered around the broken bike. "I get that way too," he said suddenly, sharp eyes turning back to Dustin. "When I work on bikes."

Dustin nodded in return, taking a moment to admire his work before giving his attention back to Hunter in time to catch a confused look from the crimson ranger. Dustin followed the other's eyes to his right arm, which he appeared to have subconsciously brought up to hold down his eyebrow. Flushing with embarrassment he yanked it down and shoved it behind him, holding it back with his other arm.

_Bad hand, no cookie_.

He cursed himself for his lack of focus.

He didn't have to worry about being self conscious when it was just him and the bike. No sir-ee. Bikes don't judge.

"Really?" Dustin asked, desperately trying to break the awkward silence that had rested over them.

"Sure," Hunter replied, willing to go along with it. He blinked a couple of times before gesturing hesitantly towards Dustin's face. "You got something…"

"Where?" the yellow ranger asked, looking wildly around for a mirror. Unfortunately there weren't any so he settled for staring into some of the cleaner, more reflective bike parts which as it turned out were terrible mirrors, so all he could really see was a brown blob hovering on the metallic surfaces.

"Eyebrow," Hunter responded, sounding just the tiniest bit amused.

Sure, laugh at Dustin's…pain. See how you felt about it when it happened to you.

Except it wouldn't happen to him, because he was Hunter, and he actually _thought _about what he does before he did it.

"Oh…" Dustin mumbled, searching for a rag. He spotted one tucked into his tool kit and yanked it out quickly so he could get rid of the mess as fast as he could. It was halfway to his face before Hunter lunged at him suddenly, grabbing the rag and pulling it out of his hand.

"Don't!" He shouted, and Dustin was about to ask him in which of the past few seconds he had lost his mind when Hunter turned the rag over (the part he was _going_ to use) to reveal a gigantic blotch of oil.

See, there's that thinking before doing stuff thing again.

Dustin just didn't have the hang of it yet.

"Here," Hunter began more calmly; tossing aside the dirty cloth and locating a clean one, "let me get it."

Dustin was about to protest (because he wasn't incapable, despite his actions in the past few minutes) but Hunter had already grabbed his face with one hand and began the process of wiping whatever mess Dustin managed to get on himself away, staring at it with an odd intensity that made the yellow ranger feel vaguely like something like this might of happened before. But the nagging in the back of his mind wasn't distracting enough to stop him from thinking about how surprisingly gentle Hunter was being. He would have thought the crimson ranger would be a lot rougher about it, being the gruffest of the rangers.

Maybe he was kind of like Cam. Or a Nestle Drumstick. He was all hard and covered with nuts on the outside but on the inside he was all soft and sweet and stuff.

And incredibly delicious.

Hunter pulled the rag away delicately, giving Dustin's eyebrow one last look over to make sure he had gotten everything before casually tossing the rag aside and resuming his old position of leaning against the table, acting as though nothing out of the ordinary has happened. Then again, they _did_ fight an evil space ninja on a day-to-day basis, so Dustin supposed it _was_ nothing out of the ordinary.

It was all about perspective.

"Thanks," Dustin replied cheerfully, rubbing the spot where the other's hand had been as the heat climbed up to his face. He turned back to his work quickly in an attempt to hide it and missed Hunter's smirk.

"You're welcome," the other ranger replied, beginning to sound more like his smug self.

Well, that wasn't fair; he wasn't smug _all_ the time. The crimson ranger had just gotten a terrible first impression with the others because of the whole "being-lied-to" thing, so Dustin just had the tendency to _think_ he was always smug. But he wasn't. He was actually a pretty chill guy.

Dustin cleared his throat awkwardly, keeping his eyes on the table. "How long have you been…?"

"Only a few minutes," Hunter confirmed, and the tool Dustin had originally been reaching for slid into his view on the table, coming to a rest by his hand.

Dustin grimaced and accepted the tool, mumbling, "Nuts."

Well, a few minutes wasn't too bad, but if he was going to be a ninja he really needed to pay more attention to his surroundings. It could be worse though, he _could_ miss his morpher beeping. So far he had never missed that happening, in fact there were times when he even thought he had heard it go off when it really hadn't. Like in the middle of the night he would wake up _thinking_ it had gone off and he would be halfway through putting his shoes on before he realized it was just a dream. Actually, he had managed to get past putting on his shoes one time and called Cam to ask what was going on like he normally would have and was surprised to get a very grumpy, very explicit reply. The green tech had _not_ been pleased about that wake up call at all, but Dustin had apologized for it.

He made sure there was actually an emergency before he called now.

"It's okay," Hunter assured, patting Dustin on the arm hesitantly before pulling back, like he was afraid the mechanic was going to wig out on him or something, which he wasn't, but Dustin could understand where he was coming from. Finally composed, Dustin chanced looking back over to him, wondering what Hunter had been talking about in the first place.

The blond caught his confusion and backpedaled, easily restarting the conversation. "Blake and I got tickets to see Fists of Fire 2 at the Martial Arts Film Festival, and I was wondering if you wanted to come."

Pure joy was Dustin's immediate response to the invitation. "Fists of Fire 2! I love that movie!"

He did, he had seen it with Shane at least a dozen times, and it was easily one of his top ten favorite movies. He had missed it when it came to theaters (something he was incredibly disappointed about) and had only seen it on a television screen. To go see it at an actually theater would be so cool! It would be all dark and there would be surround sound and the best popcorn ever (because for some odd reason no matter how hard he tried or what kind he bought the popcorn at home was never as good) and if they got there early enough they could get really good seats.

There wasn't a lot of things in this world Dustin was good at waiting for, but good seats at the movie's was definitely one of them.

"That a yes?" Hunter asked, victorious look on his face.

Dustin didn't know what the crimson ranger was happy about; _he _was the one that just got a free ticket to one of the greatest movies of all time.

"Sure!" the yellow ranger replied, good mood coming back. "When is it?"

He needed to know when to designate stake out time.

"Tomorrow," the other teen informed, pointing off to the side as though there was an invisible calendar, "three o'clock at Hollywood Cinema."

So if Dustin got there at 1:30 there was no way he could get a back seat, _no way_. It would be his gift back to Hunter. He had done all the buying so Dustin could do all the waiting; it was almost a fair trade off. Maybe he would get the snacks too.

Wait, what was tomorrow?

Saturday.

_Saturday_.

There was something about that he was supposed to remember, something he was supposed to do.

"Saturday?" He asked, trying to get clarification. Maybe it was Thursday and he was just confused.

But Hunter nodded his head in confirmation. "Yeah."

Saturday. Saturday. Saturday. What's-

The demo. Shane's Skate Competition was on Saturday and he had been talking about it all week. While Dustin hadn't _promised_ he was going to be there his presence was pretty much guaranteed. Shane went to every one of his races and Dustin always returned the favor. Except you don't race in skateboarding, but a demo was pretty much the same thing. Shane was scheduled to compete at three, the exact same time the movie started, so there was no way Dustin could do both. He would have to turn Hunter down.

It was such a shame; he had really wanted to go.

His shoulders sagged dejectedly, cheer leaving him somewhat. "I can't go," he sighed, fiddling with a stray part, "Shane's got a demo I promised to go to."

No, he was not going to be sad about missing this. Shane had probably missed plenty of cool stuff for him; the least he could do was return the favor.

"That's cool," Hunter didn't look to upset about it (not in a, _"oh-I-didn't-really-want-you-to-come"_ kind of way) Dustin assured himself. "Maybe some other time," the blond finished casually, reaching over and squeezing Dustin's shoulder to confirm his not-angry state.

Dustin's mildly surprised by this, "Really?"

So maybe he wouldn't get to see Fists of Fire 2 in a theater but _any_ movie (just about) was good for him as long as he had good company. He wasn't all that picky.

Dustin waited expectantly. It was okay if this was only a one time offer, Hunter didn't have to humor him.

He had maintained his casual appearance but Hunter's eyes had this funny look in them, like he was searching for something. "Yeah," he replied.

The excitement came back. "Awesome, I'll even buy the tickets next time."

_And_ he would wait early. That's just how on top of it he would be.

Hunter waved at him no, "Don't sweat it man, I got this."

_I got this._

Why won't people let Dustin buy them things? He was good at it, he swore.

But the movie thing was still on so he didn't comment on it, settling for happily agreeing. "Okay."

Hunter smirked again, his odd way of showing happiness. He gave Dustin one last arm pat before turning to leave. "Later man."

Hunter Bradley, coolness incarnate.

"Later," Dustin called after him, waving at his back.

Maybe he could convince him to go on Monday, that's when they get off work early.

Yes, Monday would be good.

He should try to use his ninja skills to figure out what they do to the popcorn.

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180 Fakie to Backside Rail slide.

She was a fickle beast, delicate, feisty, and difficult. If you could tame her you clearly took a step forward in skill level, unquestionably noting yourself as one of the best of the best.

Shane had yet to land one.

He thought (under Dustin's suggestion because these kinds of things tended to work for him) that the pressure of an audience, the thrill to succeed, show off, and flat out deliver would be enough to get him that extra _"umf"_ he needed to complete the move triumphantly and therefore leave no doubt in anyone's mind that _he_ was a person with mad skills.

Unfortunately, this had not been the case, and just like every time he had ever attempted it, he ate it big time.

Ironically enough Tori congratulated him on this accomplishment.

He knew she wasn't very educated in the ways of skateboarding, but he had thought he had spoken about it enough for her to get that falling was bad. Maybe she was just trying to stay optimistic, or make him feel better, or some girl-mind trick he didn't understand and didn't want to bother _trying_ to understand. Anyway, even if it made no sense he was willing to ignore any negative feelings he had about it.

And then he watched her ninja streak off into the distance when she insisted on getting them drinks they didn't need and decided it would be okay to be just the _tiniest_ bit mad at her.

He entertained the idea that she was leaving because of his "wipeout" (Cam got him in the habit of thinking it) for about two seconds (he was allowed to be a little self conscious) when he got smart and realized that her earlier reaction only made sense if she _hadn't_ seen his run and he put two and two together and figured out that this hadn't been her first streak away and he couldn't help but wonder what she had that was so important she needed to keep secret and couldn't possibly miss.

And then he got a little bit more than slightly mad at her.

Luckily (or unluckily because it _did_ stop him from chasing her down and demanding answers) there was a swarm of Kelzaks that happily presented themselves (courtesy of Marah) so he took out all his anger on those, smacking them with random lawn chairs and thanking whatever power it was that kept people from wandering in on their slugfest because he didn't particularly feel like morphing at the moment (it would be like putting a boxing glove on, the hits wouldn't be nearly as satisfying).

Between Dustin and himself the herd had been thinned down significantly, only leaving what he has dubbed as the "straggler Kelzaks". While Kelzaks were always easy to beat the last few at the end of every fight tended to be just pathetic (at fighting, at ducking, at _everything_) so much so that they tended to be the most fun to deal with, letting the rangers experiment with their fighting styles and ninja powers. Many a new combo has come from straggler Kelzaks. Shane was in the middle of grappling one into another that seemed to be frantically attacking the leg of a pop-up Gazebo when a chair whizzed by him and smacked into his intended target soundly, leaving it flailing on the ground miserably.

Poor, poor straggler, it never stood a chance.

Shane chucked his Kelzak on top of the other one anyway (his grapples were a little rusty and he was kind of committed by that point) and looked over his shoulder to see Dustin wave at him apologetically and shrug (something that Shane interpreted as a "I couldn't help it, I caught the lawn chair fever") and the red ranger smiled back at him because he knew how addictive using the plastic seats as weapons was.

Marah, seeing that she'd been beat, made a hasty withdrawal, leaving the two rangers alone and surrounded by toppled cheap furniture, lying haphazardly on the ground in positions they were never intended to be in. It looked a little like a drunken artist's attempt at modern art after being kept awake for three days.

Dustin offered his fist and Shane bumped it, pleased with their work, and then the red ranger recalled why they had run over here in the first place and the anger started building up again.

Thankfully Dustin started the conversation so he didn't get a chance to say anything stupid.

"Where do you think Kapri is?"

_That_ was a pretty good question. Usually Marah and Kapri attacked together. In fact (now that he'd thought about it), they have _always _fought together. Even when the team was split up they usually attacked one of the groups as one, playing as back up for one another. Having them apart now was just…_odd._

So where was Kapri?

Shane could only think of one answer.

"With the others most likely," he responded, allowing himself one last kick to an idle lawn chair (because he was the leader and he couldn't waste any more time pouting) before he tried to figure out what the endgame was here.

Dustin scrunched his brow in confusion. "Tori, or Hunter and Blake?" he asked, staring at the chair as though it should divulge great secrets.

It wasn't going to, but Shane didn't bother him about it.

"Maybe Tori's _with_ Hunter and Blake?" He groused absentmindedly, focusing on Kapri's whereabouts so intensely that he almost missed Dustin's reaction.

"Really?" the yellow ranger asked, scratching his chin thoughtfully. "Maybe they gave her my ticket."

Now it was Shane's turn to be confused. "What?"

_"What ticket?"_ and _"Ticket to what?"_ were the next questions he wanted to ask but he stilled them on his tongue when he realized that yes, Tori _was_ with Hunter and Blake, and secondly (and far less important but he thought about it anyway), Tori _wasn't_ their first choice to go to whatever it was, _Dustin_ was.

And in a way this made sense, Dustin was the first person to try and befriend them back when they were the new guys (they still were, but not _as _new) so they were just trying to return the favor and that sat okay with Shane, which brought up his spirits somewhat.

"Fists of Fire 2," the other teen continued, smiling fondly in memory of the movie. "Hunter asked if I wanted to go see it with them today, but it started at the same time as your demo."

Shane nodded, figuring how this played out. Dustin couldn't go so Blake asked Tori (because even though they wouldn't admit it, they were dating) and _she_ decided she could be in two places at once and said yes.

"And that's where Tori is," Shane finished, sharing his conclusion with Dustin, who kicked weakly at the ground, mildly upset. It wasn't really lying, but any kind of deceit bothered the yellow ranger. He valued honesty above all else.

"Weak," the yellow ranger mumbled, combing his hands through his hair.

Shane patted his back comfortingly, "Yeah."

The feeling didn't pass, but the skater knew they had wasted enough time here. If Marah was just on decoy duty the real attack had to be with Kapri and the others.

"Where's the theater?" he asked, getting ready to move into action.

"Hollywood Cinema," Dustin replied, slightly more confident, and Shane nodded in confirmation before turning and streaking off in the direction of the cinema, not bothering to worry about the rule breaking (Sensei might as well dole out the punishments to all of them if he was going to get on Tori) and Dustin followed his lead eagerly.

Get there, find Kapri, take her out.

There, plan ready.

It wasn't a great plan, but it was a start.

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So Dustin wasn't the smartest guy, he knew this, his team knew this, his teachers knew this (and he'd become pretty okay with it because he liked to think he made up for this with his cheerful personality), but somehow, someway, _he_ managed to make the right choice when _Tori_ hadn't. Seriously Tor, bro's before…other bro's (he couldn't call Blake a hoe, even in his mind). It was the rules! He had _really_ (multiply that by infinity) wanted to go see Fist's of Fire 2 and _he_ hadn't gone, so why hadn't she made the same choice? Blake would have understood.

Probably.

It _was_ a good movie.

…he would have understood.

Eventually.

Shane (Being far less upset than Dustin had thought he would be (but that was mostly because he'd gone into ranger mode, the feelings would come back later)) brought them to a halt just outside the movie theater, signaling that now was the time for sneaking. They crept into the building slowly. Hollywood Cinema was one of the older, smaller theaters around town, it only showed old favorites and foreign films so it didn't usually have a lot of people but with this Film Festival there could be a lot of civilians around, so Shane's main goal was to get the rest of the team out as quickly and quietly as possible so they could have the fight outside. The lobby, as Dustin had thought it was going to be, was empty, no signs of any suspicious people, weapons, objects or…plant life (he shuddered in memory of the evil plant jive) and Shane waved him forward into the only theater (and Dustin had to fight really hard not to stop and watch the screen because it was ranger time) and was slightly startled to find…nothing.

Well, nothing out of the ordinary (unless the theater _not_ being packed was out of the ordinary, which Dustin would argue it was if he wasn't so busy being stealthy).

Oh…and there's a guy in a chicken suit holding a tray full of popcorn (why a chicken? Why not a cow?), and if Dustin had read the sign correctly…it was free.

Free?

Like, referring to the _popcorn?_

As in, _free_ popcorn?

Free _delicious_ popcorn?

Free delicious popcorn that was usually five smackers a bag that was currently _not_ five dollars a bag?

As in, _free_?

Free delicious popcorn he couldn't have because they were on a mission and there was no time for pit stops and while he may smell the tantalizing smells he may not stop and taste the tantalizing tastes?

…

_Ahhhh!_

Of course that would be his luck.

Shane was already halfway down the aisle (unaware of his agony), checking both sides of the room for the others when chicken man halted his criminal distribution of popcorn. Dustin thought he was about to blow the red ranger's cover to ask if him wanted to partake in lovely popcorn goodness when his eyes began to glow this evil kind of red and Dustin was already jump-kicking him hard before evil-chicken man could commit whatever evil-chicken deeds he'd planned in that twisted evil-chicken mind of his.

He was lucky (by this he meant that he didn't imagine the glow and attack some poor schmuck who was just doing the world a favor) and when his foot connected solidly against chicken-man's chest it felt distinctly _not_ human, and then chicken-man is flying backwards into an audience of what now appeared to be Kelzaks, and evil-chicken man took off the suit and reveals himself to really be evil-pig man (which didn't have as nice a ring to it so Dustin understood why he went with the suit).

He heard the other's behind him move into action, attacking Kelzaks and he and evil-pig man go one on one, at least, he _tried_ to go one-on-one with evil-pig man when evil-pig man decided that he didn't appreciate Dustin's jump kick and hurled him across the room, leaving him in the upper far corner. He didn't have time to morph before he was surrounded by his very own group of Kelzaks who seemed very intent on…throwing popcorn at him?

What, did they want him to eat it? Was it poisoned?

After a few blocks he jumped down a row and figured out that they were _not_ trying to throw popcorn at him, only one of them was, and he wasn't really trying to _throw_ the popcorn so much as it was just happening because it kept trying to hit Dustin with this futuristic looking popcorn container-thing that _looked_ like it tried to be a spaceship and failed.

Man, Kelzaks were _dumb._

Seriously? A popcorn container?

_**That **was your weapon of choice?_

Dustin was in the middle of rolling over a couple of seats (and an odd straw hat) when it dawned on him that he'd never seen a Kelzak fight with _any_ kind of weapon before. Why would they start to now?

And why couldn't it be a better weapon?

He decided for safety's sake to simply avoid the…container thing and darted out of the Kelzaks reach, hopping down a few rows to team-up with Blake (who was also unmorphed) who _had not_ had popcorn thrown on him. Another look around told him that no one else had either.

He must be special.

"Did it get to the part where they're fighting by the cars?" he asked, flipping a Kelzak over the row in front of them and watching it tumble unceremoniously to the ground.

"Yeah," Blake grunted in return, and Dustin heard him land a good punch that was followed by another Kelzak meeting the floor, "it was awesome."

_You don't have to rub it in_.

But he asked for it, so he's not too mad about it. Or if he was he channeled it into his fighting so he hasn't really noticed.

"Hey," he started again, pausing to duck a wild swing before returning the favor, "avoid the popcorn bowl."

A startled noise came from Blake's direction but Dustin didn't bother worrying over it because he had his hands full, and across the room he saw Shane and Hunter tag teaming evil-pig man, using their newly found teamwork to the max.

"What?" Blake called back and Dustin had to tear his eyes away from _that_ fight (because he couldn't focus on _his_ fight and _their_ fight and talking to Blake at once) so that he could think of a proper response.

"The popcorn thing, they kept trying to hit me with it. Don't touch it," he warned, and he had to jump over another seat just so he could get into Blake's field of vision to point to the Kelzak that was throwing popcorn at him earlier, who was steadily making his way across the room and was getting close to Tori.

Too close.

"You sure?" Blake asked nervously, noting it's distance from his unofficial girlfriend, and he tried to fight his way closer to her but was blocked by five new Kelzaks that seemed to have dropped down from the ceiling.

Well, they were _ninjas_, so it kind of made sense.

"Better safe than…popcorned?" Dustin replied, hurling one of his attackers into another before making the choice to be proactive.

He threw an odd salute to the navy ranger that he wasn't sure the other caught and leapt onto the seat backs, hopping from row to row and dodging falling Kelzaks, making his way towards the Kelzak with the container that'd begun hurling popcorn on Tori. Now that he could see it at a distance it looked like the Kelzak wasn't just trying to hit her with the container, he was trying to hit her with the very top of it, not bothering to try and smack her with it's sides. Holding it must not hurt you, it was what's on the inside that must be bad.

Situation evaluated, the yellow ranger leapt over the seats and barreled into his target, knocking the container to the ground. He gave it a quick jab to the head to make sure it didn't get up before he scrambled across the ground and grabbed the container triumphantly and was pleased to find he was right about holding it. He rolled to his feet and was about to use it on one of the Kelzaks (to see if it was really a weapon or just a stupid popcorn container) when a stray kick came out of nowhere and knocked it out of his hands.

In his mind the container flew through the air in slow motion, arcing dramatically over the mob of Kelzak's.

Another kick (probably from the same place as before) threw him across the seats, and he pushed his head back so he could see where the container fell, hoping that it would hit evil-pig man so they could call it a day.

Dustin shoved the stray Kelzak that was hitting him away carelessly, never taking his eyes away from the container and time seemed to freeze as it fell (top down) to where an unsuspecting Shane was helping Hunter off the ground. Dustin yelled just as the container hit his back, and the two red rangers are suddenly no more, vanished into thin air.

Evil-pig man laughed and snatched the container up off the ground and before Dustin could barrel his way across the room and _make_ him give their friends back he's gone too, leaving him, Blake, and Tori in an empty theater with popcorn strewn all over the place.

His best friend was gone because of him, (they'll get them back, because that's what they did) but that didn't change the fact it had happened and that was when the real agony kicked in.

When he woke up this morning, he never would have thought he'd want to swear off popcorn.

But now he kind of did.

* * *

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Endnotes:

Sorry for the delay, we've hit test time at my school, so the next chapter might be a little delayed too. After that, I should be back on schedule.

As always I would like to thank my wonderful reviewers, LadyLove92, Rogue Ranger, and JDTB90! Don't worry; your questions will be answered in time.

100,000 words! Can I get a whoop, whoop! Seriously, didn't know if I would make it, and still, I've written this much and so far _Cam's_ the only one who's seriously developed? What have I been doing? Guess I redefine taking it slow.

So…Dustin's a foodie. I've decided, he's simply enthusiastic about food. I can't help it, I start writing him and…that just happens.

Also lawn chairs, weapon or furniture? The answer, both.

Yay for finally getting to Porkchopped!

Until next time.


	17. Accident Waiting to Happen

Chapter 17

Accident Waiting to Happen

I don't own the Drowsy Chaperone

Takes place during "Pork Chopped"

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Kanoi's students, while not the most model of specimens, had never…misbehaved (he believed that would be the most apt description of what had occurred) too terribly in the run that they had been under his tutelage. In the beginning they were unfocused, undisciplined, and clearly novices who were so rough around the edges they might as well had be sandpaper, but they had potential. Potential that when clearly called to they stepped towards. Of this he was very proud.

Taking up the wind morphers did not immediately make them perfect (nor would Kanoi ever want them to be, the very idea of it was unsettling), nor did it affect their personalities in any way, but the call to rise _had_ increased their diligence in their training. All "goofing around", as his son so eloquently put it, had stopped (at least for the most part, there were a few incidents like the night filming escapade).

That was why it came as such a surprise when Cam called him out of his noontime meditation to show him that Tori (of all his students she was the last he would suspect to give in to such temptations (Thunder Rangers included, despite the fact that the majority of their training did not take place under his watch)) was using her ninja skills for personal gain. He knew where her heart was in the matter once he had observed _why_ she was doing it (though he would have told her to try to please two people simultaneously would ultimately please no one, herself included) and in fact, if it weren't for her actions the other Wind Rangers would have remained completely unaware of the attack on the Thunder Rangers, and with her leading them to the where the battle was the team was united and therefore able to attack together and pose a greater threat. These gains however would not be spoken of, because the means by which they were achieved was clearly against ninja code, something the Blue Wind Ranger was very aware of.

Tori, despite the best of intentions, would have to be reprimanded, a blow that struck near to his heart.

As the only female on the team Tori was a force of her own, strong, independent, and intelligent, giving the team much needed balance with her feminine touch. She led by example and until now she was everything Kanoi had hoped she would be when she had first joined the academy. However, he was more than aware that Tori (now reflecting on her actions) would punish herself more effectively then he ever could, and unlike some of his other students, she would learn from her mistake the first time.

For her there would be no repeat incidents.

That said, he and she both knew he had to address her decision, and he would doll out a small punishment to be carried out a later date (more for appearances sake than for anything else, though he knew Cam would appreciate it if he had a little less cleaning to do). Currently, the female ranger stood in front of him in the main room of Ninja Ops, waiting for him to speak. He remained silent and allowed her anticipation to build as he took a moment to study the other rangers. Blake was off to the side behind her, close enough to give support, but far enough to give their conversation a little privacy, a position that didn't surprise Kanoi in the slightest given the nature of their relationship. They were as Cameron described it "dancing around each other", for reasons Kanoi was unsure of. It was obvious they cared about each other, and so long as that was maintained (and no more rules were broken) they could continue to do as they pleased as far as he was concerned.

Kanoi shifted his attention to the remaining ranger. As soon as he had entered Ninja Ops Dustin had made straight for Cameron and began pacing behind him frantically, pausing every so often to fidget with the hem of his tunic sleeve or lean over the back of Cam's chair to peak at the screen and his son (to his surprise) not only tolerated this, but would absently pat the yellow ranger's arm in comfort when he touched his chair, all while continuing his work. The sight (in spite of the situation) warmed his heart; he was glad that Cameron was finally connecting with the team.

Cam's efforts were in vain though, as the yellow ranger did not relax in the slightest.

Kanoi would have been more surprised by Dustin's complete disregard for Tori's punishment were it not for Shane's absence. The others had reported (as the Earth Ninja was too distressed to do so himself) that Hunter and Shane had been trapped in a container of some sort at the movies during the fight, and before they could react Lothor's monster, General Trayf, had vanished and taken the trapped rangers with him. No one was at fault for their containment, but Kanoi had no doubt that Dustin blamed himself for their absence. He would have made it abundantly clear that this simply wasn't so were it not for Dustin immediately seeking out Cameron to ground him, and eventually (Kanoi hoped), comfort him.

With that concern taken care of he could focus on the two blue rangers.

"Tori," he started, breaking his silence, "using your ninja powers for personal gain is a very serious infraction of the Ninja Code," he lectured, staring her down despite the significant height she had on him. It was a skill held by all ninja masters, and until this point in his life he had never had to access it.

Guilt appropriately painted her features. "I'm sorry Sensei," she began, genuinely meaning it, "I just…wasn't thinking," she looked at him pleadingly, strong, resolute, and sorry.

He tilted his head, understanding her predicament. "We are all inclined to mistakes every once in a while," he admitted, making sure to include Blake (for future decisions), and not bothering to address Dustin. "But when they are committed we must take the time to learn from them."

"No more trying to be in two places at once," she concluded, looking off to the side away from Blake, shame creeping into her features.

"Among other things," he finished, and for the moment the lecture was over.

As for punishments…he'd get to that later.

"I would have understood," Blake added, speaking loudly enough to draw Tori's attention back to him.

In the background Dustin and Cameron paid him no heed.

"I know," Tori started, sweeping her bangs back nervously, "I just-"

"Didn't think?" The Navy Ranger supplied playfully, and Tori relaxed.

"Yeah," she whispered, and they then proceeded to stare at each other in a manner that only teenagers do, that Kanoi knew he was going to become very familiar with.

For the moment, Kanoi ceased to exist in their eyes.

A flash of movement by Cam's console was the only warning they would have got (were they paying any attention) before Dustin barged in between the two blue rangers, waving his arms and pointing frantically at the computer screen, explaining that Cam had discovered where the monster might be, and more importantly, where their two missing teammates were. As they morphed and prepared to leave Kanoi could only hope that his enthusiasm to seek Shane's return would not cloud his judgment and cause him to make errors, the yellow ranger had enough on his mind as it was. However, Power Rangers have always operated under such conditions, so there was no way Kanoi could…"coddle" him, as he had done with Cameron.

It wasn't coddling so much as it was concern.

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The fight had been immediate, throwing them all into action without allowing them the chance to morph, but for the most part, Shane had thought it had gone all right. The arrangement of the seating limited the amount of Kelzaks that could attack them (depending on where you were standing) and while the seats might have impeded _their_ attack mobility, it impeded the giant pig monster (whose name he had yet to hear so he was just going to keep calling him the giant pig monster) _more_, which was something Shane was taking full advantage of until he'd paid the giant pig monster back for throwing Dustin across the room. Well, he would have done it anyway because of ranger duties, but he was still pretty mad about his best friend being hurled so carelessly so he tried to make each hit hurt a little bit more than usual.

He and Hunter had ended up tag teaming the pig guy, and they were making short work of him until Hunter got blind sided by a falling Kelzak and was thrown to the ground. The crimson ranger tossed it aside easily, and Shane was in the middle of helping him get up when something hit his back and suddenly everything went black and the fight disappeared.

No, it wasn't that the fight disappeared, it was more like he and Hunter had disappeared from the fight, and _reappeared_ after the black passed in a giant box with red and white stripes on the wall that led up to a white circular shaped disc (lid…maybe?) thing on the ceiling. His first thought was alternate dimension, and he couldn't help but groan because those things were _really _starting to get old, and then he realized that he was standing in about two feet of cloudy, yellow, oily…liquid that appeared to have…giant pieces of popcorn floating in it.

…

…

…they were in a popcorn container.

They'd been foiled by an evil popcorn container.

Where did Lothor come up with this stuff?

Despite the number of things he _should_ be worried about (like how to get _out_ and how they got _in_), Shane couldn't help but feel a little relieved that Hunter was trapped in here with him because if the crimson ranger hadn't been Shane would have never been able to live it down.

Speaking of whom, Hunter was still on the ground (as he had been outside), and successfully managed to become thoroughly soaked in the liquid butter flavoring (he was pretty sure by this point it wasn't really butter), and Shane mentally celebrated that by comparison he's much better off because the stuff had only soaked into the very bottom of his shorts.

As if Karma had read his mind the container shook violently out of no where, and Shane was thrown to the ground and became completely submerged in the nasty oily awfulness. He broke up out of it as soon as he could and tried to shake himself off but the stuff was _everywhere_, in his nose, his eyes, his _hair_; and he could tell that it was going to take forever to get it all off.

When he cleared his eyes he was greeted by a smirking Hunter who was leaning against the far wall (not much better off than he was, but celebrating it) and Shane was about to glare at him and stand back up when the container rocked again and he was launched through the air and slammed into the wall next to Hunter, sliding down it quickly and ending up back in his liquid tormenter.

Okay, so no more snarky thoughts _ever_.

He had learned his lesson.

This time Hunter took pity on him and pulled him back out of the golden flavoring, helping him turn around and get his back against the wall so he could stabilize himself. He gave a nod of thanks and motioned to their morphers; it was time to bust out of this popsicle stand. Hunter gave a look that showed he agreed completely and they moved into action, calling out their morphing commands and preparing to get _out _of here and…nothing happened.

Absolutely nothing.

Shane took a second to blink stupidly, staring at his morpher in confusion because it had never _not_ worked and then he noticed that Hunter hadn't morphed either, and was sharing his look of confusion.

"…that can't be good," Shane murmured, rubbing some of the oil off of his face. Beside him Hunter began shifting his weight (which was the only indication that Shane's ever gotten from him that meant he was nervous).

"Try blasting the lid off with air," Hunter suggested/ordered (but Shane took it as a suggestion) and the red ranger closed his eyes and focused his energy before blasting out at the ceiling.

Or, it _would_ have been blasting out at the ceiling if anything had happened. Instead his energy was contained within him, and try as he might to use it externally nothing happened.

"I can't," he admitted after glaring at the ceiling.

Hunter grunted beside him and Shane was about to tell him to go ahead and give it a try when the other took a solid stance away from the wall and closed his eyes, already one step ahead of him, and took a deep breath. Shane hadn't decided whether to be happy or peeved if he succeeded, and as it turned out he didn't have to choose because it soon became apparent that Hunter couldn't access his powers either, and now both of them were glaring daggers at the ceiling.

Maybe they should be doing something more productive.

Eventually Shane gave up his staring contest and rubbed the side of his head. "I think the container's…" he searched for the right word, "nullifying our powers. Or like, muting them."

Hunter gave up beside him, running a hand through his slicked back hair. "Yeah," he agreed, moving to lean back against the wall.

The floor (now done harassing Shane) shifted again underneath their feet, and Hunter smashed against the wall with an _"uff",_ while Shane's feet slid out from under him. He met the floor again, though luckily he didn't end up sucked underneath the yellow goo again. Hunter growled and lowered himself down slowly, moving to sit down in the slimy badness. Obviously the container didn't like it when they stood.

It would be easier to keep their balance this way anyway.

"What happened?" Shane asked aloud, wondering if the crimson ranger saw something he hadn't. He had thought whatever hit his back had been a Kelzak, but he was beginning to think differently, and from his position Hunter would have had a better view.

"Something hit your back," the blond offered, and before Shane could make any sarcastic comments about what he already knew the other continued, "It looked like a popcorn container, come to think of it."

So the pig hit him with a container and because he had been touching Hunter, both of them had gotten…sucked in (he guessed) and it had some kind of magic (or technological or whatever) _thing_ that kept them from using their powers, and now their friends had to fight by themselves and there was nothing _they_ could do accept sit and wait and hope for the best.

Beside him he could see Hunter making the same mental conclusions.

"Now what?" Shane asked casually, glaring back at the ceiling.

Hunter sighed and knocked an idle popcorn piece away, just as frustrated as he is, "I guess we wait."

_I guess we do._

He and Hunter…while they had managed to create a working relationship where they both kind of led (Shane wouldn't admit it because he was still the red guy and as Dustin insisted _that_ was who got to be in charge) they hadn't really…become friends.

He supposed now was as good a time as ever to fix that problem.

"So," he started, blinking his eyes to relieve some of the glaring strain, "how was the movie?"

Hunter looked at him questioningly before shrugging, and settled back against the wall. "Until the Kelzaks showed up, pretty good."

Which was something that would normally ruin any movie event.

Shane searched for something else to say and eventually settled on, "Yeah, it's one of me and Dustin's favorites."

It was, they had to have the script memorized by now. It was an old standby they would watch when they had nothing else to do, or if they were doing homework and Dustin wanted some white noise in the background. Shane hadn't figured out what he had against the first one, but Dustin had a thing for sequels. Something about cheering on the underdog.

The container shook again but it wasn't as major as before, the two red rangers braced themselves against the wall and scrunched their eyes shut as more "butter" sloshed into their faces. The shaking passed and they sputtered, wiping the oil out of their eyes.

Hunter coughed and spat out some "flavor" that had made its way into his mouth, "I haven't gotten to see it yet."

Because a giant pig monster attacked and trapped him in a container of butter, with just a hint of popcorn.

Not your typical day at the movies.

"Oh," Shane replied before he realized he has nothing to add to that. "Well you should," he finished lamely with a wince.

Hunter gave a cough that could have been a laugh, "Yeah."

His comment was followed by an odd silence, in which both of them were trying to figure out what (and if) they should say. Eventually they both settled on a subject that had been of interest since the fight had started, but their timing was so matched that they turned to face each other at the same time.

"Was Tori-?" Shane asked just as Hunter started to say, "Did Tori-?"

And they both stopped and snapped their mouths shut, staring at each other until eventually Hunter gave a shrug and said, "Go for it," allowing Shane to ask first.

"Was Tori seeing the movie with you guys?" Shane asked, knowing the answer but seeking confirmation.

"Yeah," Hunter nodded, looking at him oddly. "Blake invited her to 'hang out'," he mumbled sarcastically, using exaggerated air quotes. "She kept disappearing though," he finished, settling his arms down and looking back at the red ranger, taking his turn to get a confirmation.

Shane sat back with a sigh, slumping against the wall. "She was at the skate demo," he answered the silent question, and Hunter leaned back against the wall, understanding washing over him.

"Two places at once?" He asked, in a tone that said _"wow, that's so bad a plan I'm surprised she actually came up with it, let alone tried to carry it out."_

Shane couldn't stop his chuckle, "Yeah."

Hunter gave a quiet laugh too, drawing his leg up to his chest to rest his arm on it. "Not effective."

_Understatement._

"Nope," Shane agreed with a frown, wondering how exactly Tori's plan was going to work in the long run. How many excuses could you have to leave? Granted, girls took a little longer in the bathroom but multiple ten minute breaks would be a bit excessive. And obvious.

Hunter broke him out of his thoughts, "I thought it was weird when she said she could come after Dustin turned me down."

Because Dustin had been their first choice.

Something bothered Shane though.

"Why'd you ask her then?"

All the answers he came up with were ridiculous.

What, were they trying to take his friends? See if they could woo Tori away with tickets? Were they always going to do this?

The red ranger frowned, folding his arms in thought.

Hunter caught his look. "I didn't," he insisted, and then went back to staring at the other wall. "Blake did, right after I gave him his tickets."

Oh…okay then.

Not trying to steal friends.

_Wait_.

"_His _tickets?" Shane asked, trying to see if he heard correctly. Was Hunter not invited?

"Two for him, two for me," the crimson ranger replied, splashed idly in the oil.

Shane's look of continued confusion must have egged him to elaborate. "Hey, I just wanted it to be a brother thing," Hunter insisted, frowning back at the ceiling, "he's the one who insisted on the dates."

Shane froze.

"Dates?" He asked, voice ridiculously calm considering how he felt inside.

Like "date-dates"?

Blake asking Tori, that would be a date, but Hunter asking Dustin, that wasn't a date.

It wasn't.

Hunter continued, not noticing his reaction. "Hanging out, whatever he calls it. It's pretty much a date," he finished, not clarifying the he-and-Dustin part of it at all. The crimson ranger might enjoy being cool and mysterious but Shane wasn't letting him off that easily, he wanted answers and he wanted them _now_.

"You asked Dustin out?" he pressed, struggling to keep his voice normal.

He didn't know what he was worried about (or why). Hunter would say no, they would have a laugh, and then they could make fun of Blake because Hunter didn't seem to have any issues with his brother's faults and then Shane would hurriedly change the subject everything would be okay.

It would be fine.

But instead of the head shake he so desperately wanted, Hunter responded with a nod. "Yeah," he started, still looking at the ceiling, "he seemed cool with it."

The world may or may not have stopped for Shane at that moment.

He still wasn't sure what/why was/it bothering him.

Instead of focusing on it his mouth kicked into action and spilled out the first thing that came to mind after that comment, "You're gay?"

_No mouth…he asked Dustin out on a date because he was straight, he just gets his kicks that way._

Strangely enough Shane would have been relieved if that had been the answer, and the relief would be immediately followed by indescribable rage, but at this moment he could live with that.

Hunter finally looked back at him, warning in his eyes. "Bi," he answered, tone far from relaxed, "got a problem with it?"

His hard stare made Shane go into action, actually thinking about the question. _Did_ he have a problem with it?

Hunter was a guy. Hunter was a guy on his team who liked girls _and_ boys.

Did he have a problem with this?

…No, no he didn't.

"No," he replied after a few minutes.

Hunter stared him down for a few more seconds to make sure his answer was legit before he relaxed again and slumped back against the wall, "Okay then."

And for him the discussion was pretty much over.

If only that were true.

Shane pressed onward, "Did Dustin _know_ it was a date?"

Because quite frankly, Shane couldn't make any sense of it any other way. Dustin had never…given any signs that he liked guys (he thought) and the only way Dustin would have been excited about this (that was clear when he finally told Shane about it) was if he thought it was just a hanging out thing.

It was Hunter's turn to think this time. He cocked his head to the side and played around with the oil flavoring with a contemplative look. Eventually he shrugged and admitted, "…I don't think so."

"Huh," Shane murmured (because his mouth seemed to enjoy racing in front of his brain) and he finally relaxed, happy to end the conversation there.

See, everything was okay. Blake asked Tori out, that was cool. Hunter was bi and that was cool. Hunter asked Dustin out on a date and Dustin didn't know it was a date so he said yes. He wouldn't have said yes if he had known it was a date.

There was a small voice asking if that was really the case.

Shane tried to block it out by focusing on playing his favorite song really loud over and over again in his head which might have worked, but Hunter decided they weren't done with this conversation.

"Is he gay?" Hunter asked, startling Shane just as he reached the chorus. The voice was gone, but now he was faced with an inquisitive crimson ranger who didn't look like he was going to back down any time soon.

"What?" Shane responded anyway, hoping he had heard wrong and Hunter had really asked…_"Is he gray?"_

So what if it didn't make any sense.

Hunter was unperturbed. "You two are like, attached at the hip," he illustrated this by gesturing at Shane's. "So you would know right?"

His steady gaze let Shane know that silence wasn't an option, so the red ranger gave him the only answer he knew, "He's not gay."

There, the end. Stop trying to woo him.

St…start, no starting to try and woo him.

No wooing.

Red guy said so.

Hunter was persistent. "You sure?" he asked, disbelief clear in his eyes. "Most guys don't talk about it."

_Have you even met Dustin? He talks about everything._

"Yeah, I'm sure," Shane replied, starting to get a little annoyed.

Then, despite his good judgment he added, "He doesn't talk about that kind of thing," and then he immediately regretted it because that would only encourage Hunter.

"What kind of thing?" the other asked, starting to get a little angry himself. "The kind of thing where he likes guys," Shane choked, "or the kind of thing where he likes girls, or the kind of thing where he's romantically interested in anyone?" He emphasized the anyone by sweeping his hand, accidentally knocking another popcorn piece but he never taking his eyes off of Shane.

The red ranger wilted slightly under his stare. "Dustin…likes everybody, he doesn't talk about romance," he admitted, because…he _didn't_.

That was so _weird_; he never noticed that Dustin just didn't talk about that kind of thing. In fact Shane had given up about talking about girls around the yellow ranger because the conversations never went anywhere. He always thought that was just because of the other teen had confidence issues.

No, it _was_ because of his lack of confidence, Hunter was just twisting this.

"So he's avoiding it," the crimson ranger concluded, nodding in agreement with himself.

Anger flared within Shane. "He just doesn't think about it!" he insisted, turning his side to the wall to maintain eye contact with the other ranger better.

Hunter rolled his eyes. "He's _really_ touchy feely," he ticked off on his fingers, "more towards you and Cam than Tori," he added, pointing at him and then the ceiling where _"Cam"_ was. "So it makes sense," he finished, as if it was the easiest thing in the world and everyone else had already come to that conclusion and _Shane_ was just being thick and not figuring it out.

They were coming real close to losing that teamwork thing they worked so hard to get.

"That he was gay?" Shane growled, _growled_, before he could stop himself, and that got him a startled look from Hunter.

_Yeah, surprised I'm defending my friend?_

_You would be._

Hunter held up his hands in a placating way and tried to explain himself. "That he isn't as comfortable around women as he is around-"

"His friends?" Shane interrupted, because he wasn't sure how he would feel if Hunter finished that sentence, "He's just respecting Tori's space!"

Just like _Shane_ respected Tori's space, and that didn't make him gay did it?

"And _your_ space doesn't need to be respected?" Hunter countered, raising his voice to match Shane's and suddenly they're in each others faces, glaring just like they had before the whole Bop-A-Roo thing before Hunter suddenly gave a sigh and plopped back against the wall, leaving Shane awkwardly squatting and glaring at nothing.

Gingerly, the red ranger resumed his old position just as Hunter sighed again and rubbed his face, mumbling, "I told Blake this was a bad idea."

Shane forgot he was mad for a moment to ask, "What was-"

"This mess," Hunter interrupted, motioning to where an invisible mess would be. "Look," he started again, much calmer, "if you and him or if he and Cam or you and Cam _and_ Dustin have a _thing_ going on then I'm sorry and I'll stay out of it," he finished, holding his hands in surrender and Shane froze _again._

Since when was he involved in this?

"We don't!" He sputtered, face heating up, and he would give anything for them to be rescued at this exact moment so that this conversation could be over and forgotten forever. "They don't" he added, thinking wildly about how _Cam_ of all people got pulled into this. "There is no _thing_ to be had here!" he ended, gesturing frantically at where Hunter had indicated the _"mess"_ was and looking at him pleadingly because there was _no_ part of him that is enjoying this talk of theirs.

He tried to ignore the fact that he had started it.

Hunter looked up at him (and Shane didn't catch this at first because he was thinking about the idea of dating Cam _and_ Dustin and his subconscious kept congratulating him on being a pimp) slyly, before he asked carefully, "You sure?"

"Yes!" Shane replied, trying to make this just end _(because he was not a pimp!)_

"Okay," Hunter said coolly, smile spreading across his face and it appeared for the first time since they started this that he's actually letting this little "chat" of theirs stop and _that_ was when Shane got suspicious.

"Okay?" Shane mimicked, utter disbelief written across his features.

"Okay," Hunter echoed again, and Shane thought, no, _knew_, that the crimson ranger was distinctly pleased with himself.

And though he knew he probably wouldn't enjoy it, he decided to ask anyway. Even if it felt like he was walking right into a trap.

"What do you mean by _'Okay'_?"

Hunter wagged a finger at him innocently, and Shane's theory was proven true. "I mean if I'm not stepping on anybody toes…"

"You're going to ask Dustin out?" Shane asked, pitch raising slightly, and for some odd reason he immediately wanted to follow this with, _"If you do I'll break your legs"_, but the idea of _why_ those words come to mind made him stop to think and that's just enough time for Hunter to swoop in and finish his piece.

"I'm going to let him decide how he feels," the blond declared, daring Shane to tell him differently.

Who was about ready to go Hulk on Hunter, team mate or no.

"He's not gay," Shane insisted, curling his hand into a fist.

Maybe this box was making them crazy, on top of the power stopping thing.

They'd done weirder things.

The coy look was off Hunter's face in an instant, and replaced with one of cool fierceness. "Maybe he's not," he started, rising to look down on Shane. "And maybe he is," he offered and Shane's about to interrupt him but Hunter won't have any of that, "Ultimately though, that's _his _choice, not _yours_."

Shane felt his eyes widen in surprise and he tried to think of _something, anything_, "I'm not-"

"You're not comfortable with the idea," Hunter cut off, leaving no room for argument.

"I'm just not…not used to it," Shane admitted eventually, running a hand through his hair. "It's not something I think about."

Just like Dustin never thought about it.

That's right; he didn't know why he was worrying. Dustin would say no (when he found out it was a date) and they'd have a laugh about it later.

Hunter gave him an inspecting look.

"An unexplored option?" he offered, causing Shane to choke awkwardly on…air.

"I'm not gay," the red ranger insisted, and then he gave a look to let Hunter know that _he_ was leaving no room for argument.

He wasn't gay.

Hunter shrugged, unaffected by his declaration. "Then this shouldn't bother you."

Shane slumped back against the wall as they fell back into tense silence, one that he wasn't particularly bothered to break it any time soon.

_It will be funny later_, he promised himself, glaring at the ceiling.

Dustin would say no.

_No worries._

He closed his eyes and tried blasting his favorite song again, as loud as he could, but it no longer had the power to distract him, and eventually he gave in to his racing thoughts.

This _shouldn_'t bother him.

But it did.

* * *

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* * *

Endnotes:

We're having this conversation now? Really? Okay.

Yeah…didn't think that's where this was going to go.

Oops?

A big round of applause to Rogue Ranger, whose constant and thoughtful reviews earned him a POV from Sensei (I know, it was short, but I might bring him back later).

I was planning to do Blake's POV too, so I could have them all knocked out but the popcorn conversation took longer then I thought it would so…maybe next time?

We'll see.

I couldn't think of a better way to put it so I did use Sensei's exact line from the series (which is something I loathe doing but it fit).

Speaking of the conversation in the popcorn container, how did it go (in y'alls opinion)? I'm a little biased, but I think it went okay.

Until next time.


	18. Confrontation

Chapter 18

Confrontation

I don't own Jekyll and Hyde, the musical…still

Takes place after "Pork Chopped"

* * *

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In hindsight Dustin probably should have figured out that the moment they finished off the evil pig monster (General something-face according to Tori) that whatever voodoo magic that had trapped Shane and Hunter in the evil popcorn container would probably wear off, sending them back to normal size. See, if he had thought of _that_ he wouldn't have insisted on keeping an eye on the container (and he wasn't the only one slipping because Tori and Blake had _let_ him do this, so, hey, not _completely_ his fault) after they rescued it from General evil pig's special dimension. They had thought (he's not sure _why _but it made sense at the time) that maybe the pig and the container weren't related so they would just have to wait until they got back to Ninja Ops to get the red rangers out because of something or other, he hadn't been paying attention, but the point was that _he_ had been the one holding the thing during the zord battle.

So it wasn't until Dustin had his lap full of Shane and Hunter (who were as equally surprised as he was at this predicament) when he realized that those ideas were _clearly_ not the case, and he kind of wished he had let Blake keep a handle on the container as he was outside fighting Marah and Kapri and a bunch of Kelzaks, and _not_ inside a cockpit that was only built for one person.

His chair, the little fighter that it was, attempted to hold their weight for about .34 seconds (what a trooper) before it totally gave up and shot out from under the yellow ranger, and the added weight of his friends slammed him into the ground faster than…a really big boulder falling down (with other really big boulders on top of it).

…pain trumped creativity, every time.

"Cam," he wheezed, begging the tech as the other two tried to awkwardly (and failed) get a hold on something to get up, "teleport…please."

Luckily Cam was a super dude and teleported them back to Ninja Ops (Dustin wasn't sure about Tori and Blake and by that point he didn't really care) and they are thrown to the ground once more. At least this time they got the benefit of having room to spread out, and Shane and Hunter...slide off him (which Dustin would be more confused about if the wind hadn't been knocked out of him) and they both quickly grab one of his arms, pulling him off of the ground.

Before he got to thanking them there was another flash and suddenly Blake and Tori (who hadn't been grabbed in Cam's first teleportation because Dustin was just _so _much more important) appeared off to the side, in their snobby, completely fine states.

Unintentional jerks.

Dustin powered down and before he bothered to check to see if Shane had gotten any injuries he launched himself at the red ranger, hugging him tightly in apology/just-because-he-wanted when he felt his shirt (and arms and _face_) get wet with this wet, slick, yellowy stuff, and he pulled back to get a better look at Shane and Hunter to see that the were covered (and by covered he meant _covered_) in…butter?

He sniffed his hand tentatively (earning a giggle from Tori who he ignored because he was still a little mad at her) to discover that yes, it was butter, and then he gave Shane another look-over to see that despite being covered in the liquid goodness, he was fine. The mechanic argued with himself for about a second before he gave into temptation and flung himself at Shane again (he had already got some on him anyway) and gave him a more thorough hug.

Luckily Shane wasn't holding any grudges (if he had even known that it was Dustin's fault he had gotten captured) and let out a chuckle before returning the hug, patting Dustin lightly on the back (attempting to avoid spreading the mess even though Dustin had pretty much embraced it).

Mission debrief went smoothly after that (after they all got a few jests in at Shane and Hunter's expense) and Tori apologized to Shane (and then surprisingly to Hunter) and it looked like everything was going to be fine and they could all call it a day.

Cam, with his mad computer skills, begged to differ.

"They rescheduled the movie viewing," Cam announced shortly after typing…whatever he usually typed after debriefing.

"Really," Blake asked, peaking over his shoulder, "For when?"

At this Cam wasn't the only one to give him a questioning look, under their eyes he raised his hands in surrender, "We still have four tickets."

"That's right," Hunter replied, snapping (or attempting to snap but the butter prevented it). "Kapri never took ours."

"It's in thirty minutes," Cam finished, frowning at the oil that Shane and Hunter were dripping all over the floor.

Poor guy, he would probably have to clean that up later.

_Rewiring the zords? Programming high tech computer thingys? Easy cake._

But make Cam clean and he is _one_ unhappy puppy.

The sound of Blake's voice tore Dustin away from his puppy thoughts, "Seriously?"

Hunter frowned and flicked some butter onto the floor, causing Cam's frown to deepen. "Yeah," he droned, running a hand through his hair. "Not happening, I'll never be clean in time."

Shane furrowed his brows and Dustin could see him visibly restrain himself from wringing out his shirt. "It'll probably take four showers to get this stuff off." Dustin wondered how Shane was going to explain this one to his parents. While they did allow him a lot of freedom they would _probably_ be asking questions about his…state.

Cam, thinking the same thing because they both had great minds, swooped in to save the day.

"There are showers a level below;" he began, standing up from his computer. "We have some spare clothes you can use if you would like."

There was another level below this?

Dustin supposed that made sense, like, the zord bays had to be gigantic so, yeah; there could be more secret Ninja Ops rooms. He would have to get Cam to give him a tour one day; there were probably some really cool rooms he didn't even know about. He hoped there was a room with a giant fan like the one's they had for sky diving training. Dustin didn't know _why_ they would have one, but it would be the greatest thing ever if they did.

"That," Hunter started, smiling at the tech, "is the best idea I've heard all day."

Shane echoed his sentiment with a thumbs up and Cam nodded curtly. "Follow me," he murmured, motioning for them to follow, and they quickly disappeared down the hallway.

Blake turned his attention back to his girlfriend. "Tori, what do you say?" he asked, pulling the tickets out of his jacket pocket.

Tori opened her mouth to reply but Sensei answered for her, "Tori will have to decline your invitation; a punishment is still in order."

"Of course Sensei," Blake agreed, smiling sympathetically at the aqua ranger before looking over at Dustin. "You still in?"

Was he still in? What kind of question was that?

"Yeah!" Dustin shouted, unable to contain his excitement. "Hey, we should-" and then he remembered he wasn't the one with the tickets and amended, "I mean, can we-"

The navy ranger caught on to where he was going with this, "Yeah, go ahead and get Cam."

Because if anyone needed to get out and see one of the greatest movies of all time, it was Cam. The guy had earned it.

And popcorn.

_He could butter it himself._

"Awesome," Dustin murmured, mostly to himself, before turning to go and find Cam and the others. He had no idea where the stairs that led down were (or, more down were) but there couldn't be that many places for him to try.

Ninja Ops wasn't _that_ big, was it?

"And maybe you should get some new clothes too," Blake added, leaning casually against a wall while Tori got out a mop and bucket and began to clean up the remaining oil trail.

Ah, that was fatherly love right there, making it so Cam wouldn't have to clean it up.

Sweet.

"Clean is for sissies!" he shouted over his shoulder, after giving an attempted wink (he still hadn't gotten any better) at Sensei.

"Don't tell Hunter that!" Blake called after him, which was completely unnecessary because if there was anyone that Dustin wouldn't want to make mad, it was Hunter.

-:-:-:-:-:-

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The two red rangers had attempted (after many sour looks from Cam) to contain their mess of oil to as small an area as possible, keeping their arms tight to their sides, and while they couldn't completely stop their dripping Cam appreciated the small sentiment. Of course he was barraged by more questions of _"What else does Ninja Ops have?"_ that he promptly ignored because he would introduce them to the excess areas when they needed them and not a moment before then.

…Or until Dustin begged him for a tour, but after that the yellow ranger would explain it to them for him.

So he was futilely fighting the inevitable.

…It was the principal of the thing that mattered.

Shane and Hunter paused midway through the locker room (the showers being located on its far side) in order to evaluate the area more thoroughly Cam assumed, which allowed him enough time to go locate two spare changes of clothes in their sizes, and the proper toiletries they would require. These things would be located (with the exception of the clothes which would be shelved separately) on some metal wracks adjacent and off to the side of the showers entrance.

Towels, he almost forgot he would have to get towels (they'd be by the clothes).

To think if he had left them unsupplied they would have to wander around themselves to find them, and knowing their luck (as displayed by today's actions) one of them would most likely slip and bang their head against something and fall into a coma. Plus they would have to find new clothes, as the one's he had supplied would be soaking wet, unless some random alteration of their mental status occurred and they resolved to locate the towels naked.

The unanticipated shift in thought caught Cam completely by surprise, and fortunately the two reds were too occupied staking claims on shower stalls to notice him abruptly jerk his head up in reaction, banging it against the shelf above him as he sought out shampoo. He was in conflict with himself as to give into his inherent reaction (the physical demand) and rub the tender spot, or to comply with his second option (demanded by his brain) and smack his head against the shelf a couple more times in a frivolous attempt to make the mental images of naked, dripping wet Shane and Hunter go away.

His choice was taken from him by the sounds of footsteps behind him. The sight, while not beheld by the others, was certainly heard, so Cam gave into rubbing his head as they (he assumed but could confirm this later if he looked at his cameras...no, no cameras, he did not want to look at cameras, yes, confirmation was unimportant) peered curiously at his back.

"You okay Cam?" Shane called out behind him, concern evident in his voice.

_No, I am not fine…I'm going crazy_.

"Yeah…" he croaked, disregarding his inner turmoil. "I uh…" (_What was it that Shane hated?)_ If he could get some sympathy he would be fine_,_ "saw a spider," he finished, hoping he had gotten it right.

The footsteps drew closer (both sets) and he scrambled to explain the sudden disappearance of the spider. "It's…gone now."

_Cam Watanabe, your acting is genius._

…Please, just be so sick of being dirty that you let this go.

He could practically hear Hunter's shrug. "Didn't pick you for a spider man."

_Didn't pick you for a butter man._

…His attempts at distraction were becoming deplorable. Not a good sign, better finish this quickly.

"Here's shampoo and soap," he dictated coldly, and then had to fight a wince at his defensive tone. He thrust the indicated items at the two rangers and turned away again, this time searching for the other necessities. "I'll bring you your clothes and _towels_," he was proud of how he didn't choke on the word, "when I find them."

"…Okay Cam," Shane replied, his meager concern outweighed by exhaustion and a desperate need for cleanliness.

Cam kept his attention fixed on finding new clothes as their footsteps echoed away from him, and once he heard the sound of shower curtains sliding and water running he let out the breath of air he had been holding in and leaned his head against the cool metal of the racks. He wasn't an optimist, he was too realistic to ever be one, but he had been vainly hoping that his…quandary would diminish and eventually alleviate itself in time. Given the stress and ample distractions provided by his job this presumption was one with great merit.

The theory was that he would be so preoccupied he wouldn't have time to even spare it a thought.

However, being that he _was_ himself and the universe was still a sick and cruel creature, the…thoughts hadn't gone away so much as they had intensified, and to add to the world-inflicted torture, they had taken a definite _turn_ in nature.

He should have seen it coming, but he had been so engaged in denial that this shift had caught him completely off guard, and in all honesty he wasn't sure what to do about it.

Self loathing didn't seem to cut it anymore.

What had initiated as what he presumed was…physical comfort, establishing stronger emotional connections (friendship, teamwork, and the whole like) with the others, had somehow warped itself into a much darker, depraved sort of thing. He had thought it was harmless and par for the course, but his subconscious was…disagreeing with him. To add to this (and this was something he _was_ going to completely disregard for the moment because he could only focus on _so_ much at once, but then again, his mind was a twisted one) these…feelings, were only directed towards his…male friends.

Perhaps it was because Tori was clearly not interested, and his mind was respecting that, but that didn't stop the fact that he kept seeing the others in a…sexual nature.

Odd thoughts that kept popping into his mind during completely harmless conversations, or while he was working on a project, or while he was meditating and would catch him off guard and render him effectively useless for the following ten minutes, in which he would gather himself and attempt to pile on as much…detestation for himself as he could manage in order to get back to functioning properly.

He had yet to act on any of these thoughts (in any way, shape, or form because the idea of it made him sick), but hatred was only going to work for so long, and eventually he was going to have to work this out himself without affecting his duties or damaging the rest of the team.

It was simple. He was a teenage male. Teenage males were hormonal. This was normal; there was no reason for him to freak out.

But was it just hormones?

Logically it made sense. It was a natural stage to go through in life; and he would just have to learn to live with it.

So how should he…um…deal with it?

Objectifying his friends, even in his mind, was so..._beyond_ wrong. But what if it wasn't just hormones and-

What if-

Time seemed to stop as he gathered two hoodies out of a drawer.

He felt numb.

_What if he liked guys?_

And oddly ill.

_Was that bad?_

This was California. It was accepting here. His father would still love him if he-

Did he like guys?

The only girl they had around was Tori and she was taken but-

…

He had never taken interest in girls before, then again, there had never been any around that weren't in training.

He was overreacting; he didn't feel any attraction because he hadn't spent enough time with the opposite sex to get comfortable with them, so he just hadn't considered it an…idea.

...

Maybe he should use that moderate amount of intelligence he had and get a clue.

He had sexual thoughts about guys.

He was…_is_…_attracted_ to guys.

…

When a guy liked other guys, what did that make him?

…

_You know the answer to this one Cam._

He was gay.

He felt lightheaded.

…

…okay, still breathing.

_I'm okay._

Great.

…now what?

…

Towels, they needed towels.

_What about-?_

One discovery at a time.

He couldn't…he could only handle _so_ much.

Towels.

And clothes.

They needed clothes or else-

_Damn it._

It was going to be a long day.

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"Cam!"

Okay, Dustin would level with himself, wandering around aimlessly in hopes of catching up _hadn't_ been the greatest of plans. He could admit that now. Sure, the yellow ranger had been able to find the stairs but they went down a lot further than he thought they would, and now he wasn't sure if he was anywhere near where the showers were or if he was somehow got lost in the Zordbay.

"Cam!"

And he wasn't _all_ that sure how calling Cam with his morpher worked, but he was pretty sure it would just call one of his computers, and if he was in the showers, he wasn't going to be near the computers, and if Dustin _did_ call Blake was probably going to end up answering because he was the only one by the main console, and Dustin wasn't desperate enough yet to ask for his help. _If_ he could help.

Maybe there was a map on Cam's wallpaper.

Random hallway number five looked an awful lot like random hallway number two, and Dustin was in the middle of peeking into door number medium-size-number-he-hadn't-been-keeping track, when he figured out that he might just be a little bit kinds of lost.

When he glanced both ways down hallway number five and realized he wasn't sure which way he came from, he _knew_ that he was lost.

Now what?

Call Blake?

Shane and Hunter were probably showering by now so _they_ wouldn't answer, and he didn't really _feel_ like listening to Tori's _"I told you so"_ business so-

"Dustin?"

Sweet, sweet, father of ice cream it was Cam.

Dustin whipped his head to the right, grin spreading across his face as he saw Cam exit a room that was a couple doors down from where he was.

"Cam! Dude, you saved me!" he cheered, bounding over to the green-clothed tech and almost forgetting he was covered in oil but remembering at the last second so he stopped his hug and settled on an enthusiastic wave. "I got _so_ lost."

"I can see that," Cam droned tersely, and it was so…different (like from back when they were just getting started as rangers and they might as well be bugs underneath his feet) that Dustin almost went to a fighting position because this was not the Cam he was talking to ten minutes ago.

What happened? Did Shane and Hunter start another fight or something?

His fault, if he had just kept a better handle on the bucket they wouldn't have gotten trapped, and then they wouldn't have fought, and _then_ Cam wouldn't have gone into silent-angry mode.

Dustin needed to fix this.

Oil or no, he was going to give Cam a hug and he was about to put this plan into action when the other interrupted him. "Did you need something?"

This time his tone (while not completely relaxed) was a lot more friendly, and most of the tension that Dustin hadn't realized gathered in his shoulders disappeared.

The mechanic shifted his weight side-to-side awkwardly, jarred by the other's change of mood.

"Blake invited us to go see the movie; I came to get you," he looked down at himself with a frown. "And maybe see if I could borrow a shirt."

He looked at the tech expectantly, trying to judge his reaction. Was he going to say no? Was talking bad today? Did they have to start over? Did-

"Okay," Cam interrupted after taking a deep breath, "follow me."

He left before Dustin had a chance to reply, (Because what was his "okay" to? _"Okay, you can borrow a shirt?"_ or "_Okay, you can borrow a shirt and I'm coming?"_) and the yellow ranger dutifully trailed behind him and entered a…locker room.

Ninja locker room.

Awesome.

He followed Cam down a couple of isles of lockers and eventually they ended up by a set of drawers, from which Cam pulled out a plain black shirt.

_Eh, black. _

But it was better than what he had.

Dustin grabbed the bottom of his shirt and peeled it over his head, the oil wanting to make it stay on. Well, he had fought an evil pig from space today and _won_, so he wasn't going to let a little butter flavoring boss him around. With a grunt he pulled the shirt off, whipping it over his head and looking for a clean spot to wipe his face off. A cough brought his attention back to Cam who was staring intently at the wall (maybe it was like one of those trick pictures that had patterns but were really pictures of something else) and offering out a towel in one of his hands.

Towel, much better.

Dustin accepted the gift happily, and a gesture to a nearby laundry basket from Cam told Dustin where his soiled shirt needed to go.

_Ahh…it's everywhere_.

It must really suck to be Shane and Hunter right now, because he had only hugged Shane for like, five seconds, and he had a ridiculous amount of oil on him. Those guys must be _soaked._

_I wonder if you can get wrinkly from oil?_

Now _that_ was a good question.

He patted himself down and did a quick go over.

Face?

Check.

Torso?

Check.

Anything else?

Back, he still had some on his back from when Shane hugged him. He managed (with his skills) to get most of it off, but there was still that _one_ spot on he couldn't quite reach.

"Cam?" he asked, earning a hum in response but when he looked over his friend was still staring at the wall.

Must be some picture.

"Could you get my back?" he continued and then attempted to point to the spot and ridiculously failed because it was _that _spot.

Cam hesitated briefly before grabbing the towel back. "S-Sure," he mumbled, and Dustin turned around so he could get the allusive butter.

He almost didn't feel Cam's first attempt, his touch was so light, like he was barely trying to touch him.

Dude it was like, ninja feather training or something. Like, _"light as a feather"._

So cool. Cam would have to let him try one day. However, light wasn't going to cut it if the oil was like the stuff he had on his face.

"Harder Cam, this stuff doesn't come off easy."

The towel stilled, then swept across his back again with a force of about five feathers.

_Not cutting it Cam._

"Seriously Cam, you have to do it harder," he lectured, surprised that the other hadn't figured this out yet.

It was so light. What, did he not have the strength to…?

Was he sick?

Had he suddenly become ill?

He had been acting weird. Like, _really_ weird.

What if he had been sick the whole time and he just didn't notice because when they where tracking down Shane and Hunter he had been so worried, and Cam hadn't said anything because he was too busy finding them and holding _Dustin_ together, but it was finally getting _so_ bad and maybe right now he was about to pass out and here Dustin was demanding he do physical labor when he was really becoming sick, and he was the worst friend ever but right now he shouldn't be focusing on _that_, he should be focusing on _Cam_ and maybe calling a doctor.

"Cam!" he exclaimed (because that was how all _that_ came out) and instead of letting his concerns avalanche out of him he whipped around quickly and felt for his friends head (for fever) and pulled the towel out of his hand because getting clean had suddenly become very unimportant.

Cam jerked backward oddly (passing out?) and tripped into the set of metal racks behind him and Dustin felt even worse than before because _see,_ Cam totally was just standing on the last of his strength and the yellow ranger should have figured that out sooner and now it looked like the metal rack/thing was angry. It tilted forward precariously but Dustin was quick and firmly took a hold of Cam's arm and yanked him towards his chest just as it came tumbling to the ground, and while _they_ might still have tumbled to the ground at least Cam didn't have a rack of shampoo and soap on top of him.

For the second time that day Dustin landed on his back with another person on top of him, but this time he gently (as he could manage) rolled Cam off of him, scrambling to his knees quickly and resting his hand on Cam's forehead, and because he wasn't entirely sure what to do with his other hand he put it on the tech's chest to feel his heart. But then he remembered that on the doctor shows they felt for pulse at the neck and he shifted it to there instead.

He was so focused on Cam (who had a dazed look on his face from the lightheadedness) that he almost missed Shane and Hunter's entrance, who were standing, part oily, part suddy (Hunter still had shampoo in his hair) but all wet and wrapped in towels not two feet away.

"What happened?" Shane asked, moving over to join him while Hunter inspected the attacking wall rack. "What's wrong?"

"Cam's sick," Dustin replied, taking the shirt Cam had given him and folding it into an odd pillow before shoving it under his head.

"I'm not sick," Cam coughed out awkwardly, voice cracking, and Hunter and Shane spared him a disbelieving glance before moving into action.

Hunter brought his morpher (he must have snagged it before exiting the shower) to his lips and uttered a few low sentences into it (probably speaking softly in case Cam has a head ache), and Shane rubbed his hands on his towel real quick before placing his hand on Cam's forehead where Dustin's had been. Cam shivered at the action (was he cold?) and Dustin looked around furiously before he remembered where the towels were and quickly retrieved a few to keep the other warm.

"He was acting weird earlier, I should have seen it," Shane mumbled (mostly to himself) before helping Dustin with the towels. Cam tried to push their hands away and attempted to sit up but they tag-teamed him and gently pushed him back to the ground.

With the entry of the red rangers Dustin had forgotten about checking Cam's pulse, and seeing as Shane was busy with his head the yellow ranger went ahead and did it the old fashioned way, laying his head on the others chest to listen to his heart.

It was beating really quickly, but he thought _his_ heart beat really quickly so he laid a hand on his chest for comparison.

Yep, definitely faster than normal.

"I'm fine," Cam insisted, tone strained, and Dustin couldn't help but wonder who he was kidding. The tech was hot, and his face was all red, and his heart was going like a thing that goes quickly (Dustin was too worried to think of something) and he had almost fainted before so it was clear he wasn't okay so why was he trying to fight it?

"Just let us help," he begged quietly, reaching over to squeeze Cam's hand.

He helped them; it was time to return the favor.

"Tori and Blake are on their way," Hunter informed them while moving to get closer, but staying far enough away from Cam so he wouldn't feel crowded.

Crowded, right.

The last thing they needed was to freak him out.

"We'll uh-" Dustin began; unaware of the red's judging eyes, "we'll take him to his room, and you guys can finish your showers."

"We'll go back when they get here," Hunter confirmed, sharing a look with Shane.

Their team support needed them, everything else could wait.

-:-:-:-:-:-

-:-:-:-:-:-

-:-:-:-:-:-

Somewhere between handing out toiletries and cleaning Dustin's back Cam had lost complete control of the situation.

Odd thing is he's not sure how it happened.

He was in the middle of doing his best to clean Dustin while doing as little touching as possible, because he had had enough stress today (and after the strip show earlier he didn't want to do anything he might regret) and the only thing he wanted was a cup of hot chocolate and some sleep and he figured it was better to play it safe when the yellow ranger had very suddenly whipped around, compelling the tech to stumble backwards so he could maintain his no-touching rule when he bumped into the rack behind him (that hadn't been as balanced as he would have liked it) and was almost trapped underneath it. Luckily Dustin had reacted quicker than he had and saved him from his fate, successfully pulling him out of the way.

These would be the actions that would lead to his control being completely ripped away.

He had gone from completely no contact to complete full body contact in less than five seconds, and the precious moments he wasted being shocked by this Dustin took advantage of and maneuvered him onto his back and leaned over him, starring him in the eye.

_Innocent thoughts._

_Innocent thoughts._

_Innocent thoughts._

He chanted over and over, because this was _Dustin_ and while he may be crafty he was legitimately concerned about something. Before Cam could adjust to what had happened and get up, Hunter and Shane come into view dripping wet in nothing but towels, and his thoughts from earlier come back full force. The only thing he wanted then more than a quick and sudden death was the power of invisibility.

It was settled, the world hated him.

This was all followed by a very pathetic attempt of him assuring he was okay, but before he could communicate this Hunter was calling Blake and Tori and Shane and Dustin were touching him a lot more than he wanted them to and by the time the others come and move him to his room he was actually beginning to feel sick.

In their defense, given the way he had been acting sickness wasn't a bad conclusion to draw. He only wished Dustin had kept it to himself so he wouldn't have ended up with everyone focused on him.

The movies were completely forgotten, and as it was a Saturday the entire team spent the night (thankfully not in his room or he would have lost it) to make sure he was okay.

He wasn't sure how they nominated who would do what, but at the end of the day it was Dustin who was cuddled (_cuddled)_ into his side (for warmth, and in case he needed anything he insisted) and despite all the excess touching and how it was achieved Cam couldn't find it in himself to be mad, at them or at himself, and with all the stress of the day piling up on him he just decided to go with it, looping an arm around the yellow ranger while staring into the ceiling, wondering what it would be like if this were every night. What it would be like to have someone _want_ to be by him _every_ night.

It was a delusional dream because...

Because there was no way Dustin was gay.

Cam was getting ahead of himself, he had only discovered these feelings recently and who was he to judge, and he really shouldn't be _thinking_ about other people when he's so messed up himself but-

_Realistic, lets be realistic._

Dustin was friendly but he wasn't...gay. Cam didn't allow himself to feel anything about that. It was all simply too much. He just _blocked _it out and focused on the body breathing next to him, pretending for the night that everything was okay.

It wasn't, but…for this moment, he would be okay.

He would freak out tomorrow.

* * *

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* * *

Endnotes:

In which Cam freaks out and everyone else overreacts.

I feel evil.

And it feels _good_.

The biggest of thank you's to Rogue Ranger and JDTB90, it's good to know my chapters make your day, because your reviews make mine. True story.

I keep forgetting to mention this so I'm going to do this now, but "Pork Chopped" is one of my favorite episodes in this series, mostly because it has a lot of good moments (like when Dustin and Shane are setting up the cable at the beginning), and then there's the whole Thunder Brothers get trapped in a bucket of popcorn thing, and maybe there's the added nostalgia of it being the first Ninja Storm episode I ever saw, but what really makes it for me, like _makes_ it, is when Marah and Kapri are talking to each other on their walkie-talkie things and behind Kapri in the background you can see Blake fooling around making weird martial arts poses (like the crane). It cracks me up _every_ time I see it, like the director just said, "Sure, whatever you guys want, just go for it", and they _did_.

Brings a smile to my face every time.

Just wanted to say that, before the "Pork Chopped" arc ended.

Well, we are certainly moving along now aren't we?

So…they _were_ going to go to the movies, but then I had this idea and it just _had_ to happen. Poor Cam, he's so abused.

Also, for those of you wondering where the characters currently stand romantically, it's a little something like this.

Blake = Smitten with Tori

Tori = Smitten with Blake

Hunter = Interested

Dustin = Completely unaware

Cam = Horny

Shane = Wtf?

Feedback would be nice.

Also, accepting picture requests.

Until next time.


	19. Good Morning, Good Day

Chapter 19

Good Morning, Good Day

I don't own She Loves Me

* * *

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* * *

Cam wasn't a morning person.

He wasn't incapable of functioning after exiting his REM cycle, but he wasn't always conscious of his actions, and only years of conditioning allowed him the ability to mobilize into action immediately on waking, fully aware of himself, during what was clearly a crisis situation and _only_ in what was clearly a crisis situation. Without any sirens wailing, lights flickering, or any other obvious signs of disaster or incoming apocalypse Cam was pretty much as dead to the world as anyone else, at least until he got to breakfast, and that was only if breakfast was at least thirty minutes after he woke up.

It was, perhaps, his greatest weakness, but taking into consideration his numerous and much more suitable to world-saving strengths, he had managed to become okay with it.

This was why for the first few minutes of his semi-consciousness (in which he was contemplating his need to get up versus the benefits of going back to sleep), he simply appreciated the warmth and comfort of the extra body in his bed as opposed to processing _why_ it was there and leaving him quite unperturbed with his circumstances which, fully conscious, was something he would _not_ have done.

There's the possibility that he _may_ have drifted into a light doze after that, and when he was once more dragged unwillingly from his peaceful slumber Cam surmised that he should get a better understanding of his surrounds. He gently rolled his head to the side so he could figure out what god-forsaken hour it was.

Nine…was it an eight? No, it was a nine.

He squinted harder.

Nine…and that _could_ be a four and then a three.

He shut his eyes and plopped his head back against the pillow, exhausted by his excursion. So it could quite possibly be 9:43 (unless he imagined the extra bits on the four and it was 9:13), but either way he should probably get moving so he could get to his lab at a time that he could consider decent.

It wasn't until he was giving himself his mental motivation speech to make such a gargantuan effort when he felt something shift beside him, and he finally took note of the body that was draped half across him, the arm wrapped around his waist, the head that was pressed into his neck, and the legs that had determined _his_ legs were going to be their bestest-best friends and set forth to achieve this by initiating as much contact as possible.

Suffice it to say he had very little trouble waking up once this understanding dawned on him.

He didn't immediately initiate crisis mode (though he _was_ panicking), so his mind entered a state of frenzy where he attempted to get a grasp on the events that led to his predicament but still wasn't up to a normal state of function. Like a deer caught in the headlights he froze, as though stilling himself would make the other person (who was absolutely male, he realized in horror and then was distraught when he couldn't remember the reason _why_ he was in horror) believe he had suddenly vanished and therefore make himself scarce. His efforts were met by the others head shifting, and he could feel the lightest touch of lips brush against his neck.

He stopped breathing, and thankfully the head kept moving, shifting back down so that it was buried against his chest.

_Breathe_, he reminded himself, remembering suddenly that _that_ was a very important function, and he shakily released the air he had been holding in, desperate to be quiet.

What had happened last night?

He didn't want to think it but he knew he had to check.

…Clothes?

...

Yes, they both had clothes on.

Good, that wasn't something Cam was prepared to freak out about yet.

His room was pitch black, the benefits to living in what was essentially an underground cave, so the only source of light he had was the glow emitting from his clock. There would be no visual confirmation then. He'd have to outsource to his other senses to deduce who was currently sharing his bed.

The hair of the mystery person tickled against his chin, feeling soft and…curly.

…Dustin, it was Dustin.

_Why was Dustin here?_

He, _Dustin_ shifted again, pulling his arm back towards his body and bringing it to a rest curled by his side, fisting in Cam's shirt.

And how had he become the yellow ranger's teddy bear?

Once he applied all his concentration on the matter, the events from last night flashed through his mind, the declaration of illness, the orders of bed rest, Dustin's determination to wait it out with him all came back, along with select memories that had led him to his initial state of agitation. _That_ certain recollection made him all the more desperate to escape Dustin's hold, to avoid not only the embarrassment of their position (though the yellow ranger was likely to remain oblivious to this) but to avoid…_other_ problems that might arise.

Surprisingly, the choking sound that erupted from his body at that thought did not wake his bed fellow.

He couldn't decide if that was lucky or not so he opted to push aside his emotional distress and center his attention on Dustin's…non reaction. In retrospect, the yellow ranger must be as exhausted as he was, so now that he was in a state of relaxation, it figured he would have yet to leave it. So waking him up wasn't an option. At least, not yet. Cam would simply have to subtract himself from the situation.

Which was easier said then done.

He had heard from Shane (a report he'd gathered after Dustin's run in with Flora Bendicus's pollen) and had even witnessed himself that the yellow ranger had an affinity to swaddling himself in blankets for warmth when he was ill, and it appeared that he had taken it upon himself to reenact those conditions for Cam, leaving the tech hopelessly wrapped in excess material.

Someone, somewhere out there, was laughing at him.

He could feel it.

He _would _have simply pulled himself to the head of the bed (effectively circumnavigating the wraps) but first he had to release his leg from Dustin's strangle hold.

How he would go about this, he had no idea.

…turn…that's it.

He would turn on his side and pull his leg back, and not only would that liberate his leg but it would also be the easiest and gentlest way to maneuver Dustin onto the bed without waking him.

Plan in mind, Cam carefully moved his arm (the one Dustin had snuggled under) to a place where it would have a firm hold on his back and slowly began to turn onto his side, gently lowering the other ranger off of him.

Looking back on it, the mistake he had made here was assuming that Dustin would remain unresponsive (as he had to verbal stimuli), so he hadn't taken into account the idea that the curly haired teen would react subconsciously, and instead of achieving _less_ contact with Dustin, he achieved _more_, as the yellow ranger moved to fling his arm around Cam again and pulled forward, capturing _both_ of Cam's legs and pushing his face against his neck, and Cam hated how distinctly _aware_ he was of the lips that rested on his throat, partially blocked by the neck of his shirt.

The gulp that followed did little to help matters.

At the moment, Cam wasn't feeling much like the smart one.

_Warmth_, he thought, gritting his teeth, _he had to be doing this for warmth._

_Don't think about it, don't think about it, just **don't** think about it. Figure out how to get out of this, freak out later. And for goodness sake don't think about** how nice it feels.**_

_Just **don't** go there._

He pulled back as far as he could from the other's hold and soon became aware that he was at the edge of the bed, and were it not for the blanket tangle death trap he had become victim to he could have easily just wrenched Dustin off of him and made a mad dash for the door, denying any recollection of this ordeal if ever asked about it.

It was the coward's way out, but it was becoming his only option.

"…Warm," Dustin murmured, and Cam sharply exhaled at the warm breath ghosting across his neck.

After this day he would sleep with a knife, and that way if any blankets even _thought_ about messing with him he would dice them into so many pieces that the producers of Iron Chef would be amazed.

Dustin shifted again, leg pressing firmly in between Cam's and if he didn't stop soon there would be no room left to imagine the space between them and-

Cam jerked his legs backward, which was a stupid move because it pushed them over the edge of the bed and dragged the rest of him down with them, and the blankets being the demons from hell that they were dragged Dustin down on top of _him,_ and the situation he had been so set on sneaking out of with _whatever_ amount of ninja stealth he had kind of blew up in his face. Dustin might be a heavy sleeper, but there was no part of his ranger conditioned body that wouldn't react to this. Were it not for his growing hysteria Cam would have been impressed by the amount of thinking he had managed to get in between falling and hitting the floor.

"_Uh_," he exhaled, head rebounding off the very solid ground, while he attempted to ignore the pressing dead weight that was slowly becoming un-dead weight on top of him.

Unlike Cam, Dustin immediately shot into action, but similarly to Cam, the blankets didn't like him either, and his attempt to jump up somehow jerked Cam's leg to the side, knocking the yellow ranger's legs out from under him and collapsing Dustin back onto the tech's chest. The yellow ranger would not be subdued so easily, and squirmed his way forward, shifting until he straddled the tech's waist, and was to busy feeling the sides of the others head to notice Cam's immediate stillness.

"_Cam_!" He whispered loudly; face hovering absurdly close to Cam's, as though he could see him in the dark.

"Cam!" he whispered again when he received no reaction, his head moved so that he was staring at the side of the tech's face (for whatever reason Cam wasn't sure, he was only grateful for the distance), and one of the hands that had been steadying the yellow rangers upper body migrated to the side of Cam's face, slowly slipping up to his forehead. This time, Cam repressed his trembling (no small feat) so as to avoid being labeled "sick" once more.

He couldn't take this much attention.

"I'm fine Dustin," he assured, gently pulling the hand away, "we just got…tangled up."

Twisting movement from above preceded a couple delicate pulls on the blankets swathed around them, and Dustin let out a grunt in frustration.

"Yep, looks like it. Gimme a sec," he announced, and before Cam could ask him about his plan, Dustin had ducked down again, lying on him and tucking and pulling and working his blanket mastery charm to finagle them out. For peace of mind Cam closed his eyes and rested his head against the floor, blocking out Dustin's actions and focusing on the work he needed to complete today. Power disk modifications…he could scan the zords again (it was really unnecessary but it never hurt to be thorough)…meditation….meditation…lunch…after that maybe a little more meditation…and if that didn't work he could lock himself in the freezer for a few hours…maybe a little hypothermia would distract him.

After a few minutes of eternity Dustin threw off the last blanket and cheerfully hopped off him, helping him sit up, "Sorry man, me and blankets…"

"It's okay Dustin," Cam assured, reaching forward to pat what he thought was the others arm, and ending up brushing the base of his skull. He should've pulled back after that, immediately, because this right here was crossing a line, but he had come so far today (and he hadn't even been _awake_ that long) so he gave into himself and tangled his fingers in the curly hair for just a moment before pulling back.

He pressed his arm against his chest to try and stop the shaking.

Bless the darkness for its camouflage.

"I…I was aiming for your arm," he explained truthfully, swallowing even though his throat was dry.

It was stupid. He was stupid. He was gay but that didn't give him the right to-

He started to feel a little dizzy.

After an eternity of silence (but what was most likely a few seconds) Dustin emitted a laugh that was music to his ears.

"I know dude," he chirped, and he reached over and unlike Cam, actually managed to find his arm, "it's _so_ dark."

"Yeah," was all Cam could think of to whisper in reply. That must have been enough to satisfy Dustin because the next thing he knew he heard the yellow ranger on the move, padding across the room. A few seconds later the light was on again, and Cam raised his hand to block out the invading brightness.

Once Cam's eyes adjusted he looked up to find Dustin crouched in front of him.

"I feel like a vampire," the curly-haired teen exclaimed, "Like, _"nooo, light_"" he hissed, throwing his arm across his face dramatically, and Cam couldn't help but catch some of his enthusiasm.

Mimicry complete, Dustin moved back beside Cam, peering at him intensely (this time with the benefit of lighting). "You look a lot better than yesterday," he noted, nodding to himself.

"I feel a lot better than yesterday," Cam admitted, spirits raised slightly at his authenticity. Morning fiasco aside, he _did_ feel better.

Dustin nodded again (this time for Cam). "Good, I'll go tell the others," he declared, hopping to his feet and bounding over to the door. He paused though, hand on the knob and looked over his shoulder, opening his mouth in the beginnings of a question, but Cam beat him to it.

"I'll be fine alone," he reassured, and Dustin smiled and disappeared out the door, leaving Cam alone with his thoughts.

_I'll be fine_.

…after a shower.

After a nice, _cold_ shower.

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Showers were the coffee that Shane actually desired having. They woke him up, got him clean, and made him feel semi-functional for the day without being or making him drink a cup of nasty brown stuff. He usually took them at night, but he couldn't help (and Hunter agreed with him) but feel the remnants of fake-butter flavor on his skin.

So…showers. Yeah.

Same stalls as yesterday. Him first, Hunter second…he thought Blake might be in here too but he wasn't not sure.

The water pattered gently against the floor, swirling green down the shower drain. Shane watched it form beads on his arm and drip down, some falling against the tile, other's sliding seemingly upwards.

Water magic, completely natural.

The red ranger scrunched his eyes and tilted his head back, allowing the spray to douse his face before dropping his head once more to stare at the ground. He could see the water trickle rivulets down his body, he could hear it tap lightly against the metal walls and bleak white tiles, he knew, _knew,_ that he was covered in it, but its tactile presence just wasn't there.

Water, water, everywhere, but somehow he couldn't feel it.

It didn't really bother him.

"You know what's weird?" a voice asked that sounded suspiciously like Blake's. It was farther down the room, maybe third stall, maybe the fourth.

_So he __**was**__ here_.

Why he would feel the need to skip a stall escaped Shane, but some people had their habits.

The brother continued, "There weren't any spiders."

It took a moment before Shane could connect the dots.

_Spiders?_

...Cam, Cam said there was a spider the first time.

"It went away," he answered, mind wandering to the sight of the tech's prone body, rubbing his head. That was before he knocked over the wrack completely.

He was sick.

And spiders sucked.

"Or there weren't any," Blake replied, sounding farther away.

Maybe not farther away, maybe just softer. Softer, or change to a farther stall? Which was more likely?

Was he whispering? Why was he whispering?

Was Hunter asleep?

He hadn't said anything yet. Then again, most people were quiet in the morning.

"He's sick," Hunter answered.

…so, no, Hunter wasn't asleep.

So why so quiet?

"But he really hit his head," a new voice joined in.

Shane fought to put a finger on it.

…Tori?

Why was Tori in here? There were other showers.

Girls shouldn't be in here.

"He hit it because he was sick," Hunter insisted, sounding perturbed by her intrusion.

There was something…something he remembered.

"No…" Shane mumbled, realization dawning on him, "that was something else."

_But what?_

"Maybe there really was a spider," Blake offered.

Hunter scoffed, "You just said…"

"Devil's advocate," Tori cut in, ludicrously peppy for this hour of morning.

Shane looked sideways and reached for the bar of soap. His fingers slowly curled around it, but when he tried to pick it up he couldn't lift it, it was too heavy.

He pulled his arm back.

"To _himself_?" Hunter asked, oblivious to his dilemma, full of mirth.

"There wasn't a spider," Shane concluded, frowning at the water swirling around his feet.

Numb feet. No ants or needles but he didn't feel the water.

He didn't feel the floor either.

But he did feel naked.

He guessed that was appropriate.

"So was it a bee?" Blake questioned, and Tori laughed as though he had made a great joke.

_There was no bee._

"There wasn't anything," he finished.

"So it was because he was sick," Hunter stated, proud.

_Why?_

"No…" Shane murmured, watching the tiles shift beneath him, he struggled with his thoughts, "that wasn't why."

"Then what was it?" Tori asked.

"It wasn't a spider," Blake supplied helpfully.

"It wasn't a bee," Tori added.

"It wasn't because he was sick," Hunter started.

"Was he sick?" Shane asked, fighting to lift his head up. He frowned again at his lack of energy and sighed, running some more shampoo through his hair and turning to rinse it out.

Dustin was standing at the stall entrance, curtain pulled aside casually.

"Shane," he said, stepping forward, not bothering to close the curtain. There wasn't a cool breeze that followed his entrance.

He should be bothered by this. Dustin shouldn't be in here.

"Was he sick?" Shane asked again, stumbling to the side as a dizzy spell hit him.

"Shane," Dustin repeated, and suddenly his hands were on both sides of his face and he was starring at him, and Shane couldn't help but notice how pretty the green color of his eyes were.

"He wasn't…" he mumbled, and it was getting harder to talk, and it was getting darker, and his limbs were getting heavier and…

It was dark.

"Shane," a whisper, loud but he barely caught it, and it was followed by an abrupt pat against the side of his face.

He was lying down, couldn't see anything.

"Shane," the voice whispered again, closer, and the red ranger fought through his murky memories to figure out who it was.

"Shane, wake up," the voice hissed again, and he could feel the warm breath hit the side of his face.

…_wake up?_

"Shane," it urged, and a weight pressed against his shoulder, followed by a series of harder pats.

"Wake _up_."

…Dustin?

"I _will_ wet willy you man, I am not against it," Dustin hissed into his ear, and Shane finally cast off his remaining anchors to dream-world and remembered that he had stayed the night at Ninja Ops, and _that_ was why Dustin was waking him up.

"I'm awake," he whispered back, moving to defend his ear from incoming attacks, and Dustin let out an exhale of victory, "why didn't you turn on the light?" he asked, starring at the unrelenting darkness.

"I didn't want to hurt you eyes," Dustin replied, and Shane could tell now that he had lain down next to him in order to talk. "I wanted to wake you first, speaking of which…" and then he crawled away, probably in search of the others.

With a smirk Shane began to sit up, wanting to hear what happened next clearly.

With Dustin sticking to Cam, the others had moved to sleep in the living room, none of them too terribly excited by the idea of sleeping on the hardwood floors of the main room. Tori by majority vote (she was the one who voted against it) was given the couch while Shane, Hunter, and Blake duked it out for the chair. Blake had won ultimately, and the two red rangers were left to sleep on the floor.

Dustin, unaware of this, would probably find Hunter first.

"Tori?" he asked, initiating his previous wake up tactic, and Shane could hear him pat Hunter's face.

"Hunter…" the crimson ranger grumbled, but made no move to…move.

Shane knew _that_ wouldn't do, not for Dustin.

He expected a yelp from Hunter, as Dustin would have to carry out his wet willy threat on _him_, but he was met with a peaceful silence.

"You have really soft hair," Dustin whispered, and while the red ranger couldn't _see_ him, he had absolutely no doubt that he was petting Hunter right now. Shane didn't bother asking how he went from ear to hair, he simply accepted it.

If only he had a camera.

"Thanks," the blonde grumbled, but didn't make to stop him.

When this continued (Shane's not sure how long, it probably wasn't very but with the whole conversation they had yesterday restarting itself in his head it felt like forever) for longer than Shane was comfortable with he set off to find the light switch. Dustin being…Dustin, was kind of helping Hunter's point, but Hunter _wasn't_ right, and Shane wasn't going to ask the yellow ranger to stop being himself, so he would just have to intervene for now so Hunter wouldn't continue thinking he knew things.

He would figure out a better long term plan later.

A wave of groans echoed from Tori and Blake once he flicked the lights on, and while everyone else was adjusting to the light (himself included but he pushed through it) he made a beeline for Dustin and gently pried him away from the crimson ranger.

That was much better.

"Cam's awake!" Dustin declared enthusiastically, not bothered by the forced change in positioning, "And he looks better!" he continued, smiling brightly at Shane.

"…awesome," Hunter grumbled, sitting up and running a hand through his hair nonchalantly. Dustin looked like he was about to go for another hair feel-up so Shane casually wrapped his arm around his shoulder, returning his focus to him.

Hunter was still too asleep to notice it…probably. Shane didn't actually care.

"We should make breakfast," the red ranger urged, and Dustin nodded excitedly, hopping up and dragging Shane behind him, pulling them out of the room. Behind them Shane could hear the beginning of Blake asking just what exactly was going on before the door shut behind them. Halfway down the hall Dustin stopped abruptly, and Shane almost knocked into him, the other didn't notice because he was too busy peering down the two different directions of the hallway they had intersected.

…he was lost. Go figure.

With a fond sigh Shane readjusted their arms so that he was gripping Dustin's and began to lead them down the correct hallway to the kitchen.

There was something…the remains of his dream, bothering him, but the harder he tried to remember what they were the faster they slipped away, until he was left with nothing but an uncomfortable feeling.

Shrugging, he let it slide off him; if it was important it would come back to him later.

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Dustin had made Cam fall off the bed.

Well…_he_ didn't make Cam fall off the bed, he's not sure _what_ exactly made Cam fall off the bed, but he had a feeling it might have been the blankets, at least, the blankets were what made _him_ fall off the bed, because they were wrapped around Cam and Cam fell off the bed…maybe he had this backwards, maybe Cam made _him_ fall off the bed.

Thinking about it, it made a lot more sense.

So why did Cam fall off the bed?

His first guess would have been "because he's sick", except when Dustin gave him a check-over this morning he seemed much better, so that only left "_he moves in his sleep"_, but shouldn't the blankets and Dustin anchored him more to the bed?

…did it really matter?

No, no it didn't, it would just have to be one of life's great mysteries.

With great coercion, (actually he hadn't really done anything except wake them up and drag Shane out of the room, he just really liked using that word) he managed to get the rest of the team to relocate to the kitchen for some much needed food-making time. _He_ was going to make Cam soup but Shane reminded him that not everyone actually wanted that in the morning, so it was ultimately decided they would make pancakes (which were awesome in there fluffy goodness) but they quickly discovered the whole "too many chef's ruin food"-thing was most definitely true. Tori made him step out (he couldn't help it if he was messy) and Shane quickly volunteered to go with him to check up on Cam.

He'd make his bed for him; it was his fault the blankets were helter-skelter anyway.

He had a momentary panic attack when the reached Cam's room to see that he was nowhere to be found, and he was about to start pelting through Ninja Ops on a Cam-hunt when Shane pointed out that the lights were on in the attached bathroom, and on further inspection they could hear the shower running.

He grinned sheepishly at Shane before knocking on the door lightly, calling out, "Cam?"

When met with Shane's questioning look he whispered, "I just want to see if he's okay." Shane seemed okay with that, and they both waited patiently for any kind of reply so they could get to making the bed. When they received none Dustin knocked on the door harder and called out a little louder.

"Cam?"

Dustin gave him ten seconds (because he wasn't wasting time if Cam was passed out) before he began to fumble with the doorknob. He checked it out closer and saw it was one of those locks you could undue with a quarter or something of similar size and dashed over to Cam's desk, searching for any form of spare change. Eventually he found a nickel and hurried back over to the door where Shane had continued knocking and inserted it into the door knob, turning it to the side and unlocking the door. He shared a quick look with Shane before they barged into the small bathroom.

Their plan, if they had had one, would have started with them finding Cam and figuring out what was wrong with him. At least, that was Dustin's plan. So he really didn't think too much about it when he yanked aside the shower curtain because he was pretty sure the only thing he could find was Cam passed out in the tub, and then they would be too distracted with _that_ to worry about anything else.

Actually, the only other reasons he _might_ have been able to come up with for his non-response were that he'd been kidnapped, he accidentally stepped into an alternate dimension, or his sickness had come back with so much vengeance that he was now mute and was unable to answer them (though if that were the case the least he could do was come to the door).

Dustin he was really surprised when he pulled the curtain open and suddenly face to face with a very conscious, very _naked_, Cam, who seemed just as surprised as he was about the whole affair.

They stood there like that for who knows how long (it was too long) before Shane reached around him and gently shut the curtain.

…so he had been wrong about the mute thing. Cam had gone deaf. That would explain it.

And now Dustin kind of wanted to hide.

New plan was for him to leave the room (and possibly Ninja Ops) with as much speed as possible, but Shane intercepted him before he made it to the door, and they had an awkward struggle where he tried his hardest to dart around the red ranger and for some odd reason (later it would dawn on him that he was still trying to finish the checking-up on Cam part of the mission) Shane grappled him into staying, and eventually the scrimmage ended with Shane plopping to the ground, holding Dustin securely in his lap. The yellow ranger gave a few last squirms to freedom on principal, but size beat out dexterity, and he was stuck.

He glared at Shane who rolled his eyes in return.

Apparently their bout had caused enough noise to catch Cam's attention. "What are you guys doing?" he paused, thinking, "And why are you still in here?"

Dustin looked and Shane, wondering the same thing.

The red ranger sighed and answered, "We're not doing anything, and we're still here to check on you."

_But I thought we already checked on him._

Cam agreed with Dustin. "You already checked."

"Why didn't you answer us?" Shane asked, ignoring the aggravation in the tech's voice.

There was a sigh, "I was meditating,"

Meditating in the shower? It made sense; Cam _was _a pretty awesome multi-tasker.

Maybe Dustin should give it a try some day.

"Now get out of my bathroom," Cam stated, seemingly calm, but Dustin could hear the warning in his voice.

Shane continued as though he hadn't heard him, "Why isn't the heat on?"

"What?" Dustin asked before he could stop himself, and shoved a hand over his mouth when he realized he said something, sinking into Shane in an attempt to hide himself from someone who wasn't even looking for him.

Shane answered his question anyway, "The heat's not on, if it was the mirror would be fogged up and it would be humid in here."

"Do you think he has a fever?" Dustin asked, forgetting his need to not exist because if Cam needed help he came first.

"I don't have a fever, this is just how I wake up," Cam insisted sounding…not sounding desperate, like he needed them to believe a lie.

He _had_ looked fine earlier, but still…

Shane ruffled Dustin's hair to calm him, and shared the same wavelength. "Look Cam, if you don't want all of us around that's fine, but if you're still sick _someone_ has to stay and help you. You can even pick who."

There was a tense silence, that Cam eventually broke, "I'm _fine._ Now get out of my bathroom."

Shane glared at the curtain, clearly not agreeing with his diagnosis before shrugging it off and very quickly the moved to their feet, exiting the room in silence and shutting the door.

They stared at it together, Dustin in confusion and Shane deep thought. Eventually the red ranger shook his head and motioned towards the pile of blankets on the floor. They set to their task in silence, and once they completed it the shower was still running.

Dustin mustered up enough courage to break their silence.

"Is he still sick?" he asked quietly, staring at the door worried.

Shane reached over and patted his shoulder, concern evident on his features. "I don't know, but stay here and keep an eye on him okay?"

Dustin nodded numbly and Shane left the room, probably to consult the others, and for the first time in a while Dustin dreaded the idea of seeing Cam. After his stupid actions, Cam probably dreaded the idea of seeing him too.

Shaking his head he plopped back down on Cam's bed and waited, pushing his feelings aside.

He had a job to do, and he was going to do it.

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Endnotes:

And so the Cam torture continues! It's not my fault it's so fun.

Shout out to Rogue Rangers (and by shout out I mean thank you) for your review. Your questions are idea starters (you're the one who gave me the idea for the morning Cam scene!) so feel free to keep them coming.

I got halfway through writing this chapter (the first time) when I realized I didn't really like what I had, it felt rushed and awkward, so I tanked it and started over, which is why I was delayed a couple of days. My apologies.

For those of you wondering where exactly all the Dustin/Shane in the Dustin/Shane story is, fear not, it will happen…with perhaps an added bit of Cam. It's looking more and more like a possibility, but I don't want to set anything in stone. Except the Shane/Dustin thing, _that's _set in stone.

You all probably got this but the second scene starts with a dream. I wasn't sure if that came across clearly or not.

I have posted a poster on my deviantart account for this story

http:/ rebel-paisley. deviantart .com/#/d3ayzew

And I also created a picture for chapter 18 of Cam and Dustin

http:/ rebel-paisley. deviantart .com/#/d3ap4a8

I think I _might_ try and do a picture for every chapter (or at least the prominent ones) so if you guys have any favorite moments you want to see let me know and I'll try (emphasis on the _try_) and make them.

Until next time.


	20. Schadenfreude

Chapter 20

Schadenfreude

"People taking pleasure in your pain"

I don't own Avenue Q.

Don't drink while reading this chapter.

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The situation in the kitchen had calmed down greatly since his last visit, and by the time Shane returned Tori was already pouring pancake batter onto the griddle while Hunter had started on the dishes. Blake leaned against the counter next to him, keeping a hold on a hand towel, and Shane could tell from the smug look on his face that he must have won whatever challenge he and his brother had set up to decide who would get stuck with dish duty. Shane also noted that the flour from Dustin's spontaneous bag explosion had been cleaned up as well; leaving only bare traces of the yellow ranger's personal touch on the counters.

All and all, not to shabby for a ten minute absence.

Aside from a glance from the shorter Thunder brother Shane's entrance was ignored, the others were too busy settling into a morning routine. It was a liberty Shane couldn't allow himself to take, not with the exchange he and Dustin just had with Cam looping through his mind.

It was…perplexing.

Dustin hadn't been the only one concerned (though Shane had repressed his feelings out of the need to be able to think clearly) when Cam hadn't responded, and all though he seemed okay on inspection (the red ranger had mentally blocked out everything below the tech's waist) he was still disturbed by Cam's temporary inability to hear. He trusted Cam, and if the he said that he had been meditating Shane was willing to believe him, but the freezing cold shower told him not to be so quick with his judgments. Unless, of course, he _was_ okay, but then Shane could only think of one reason anyone would _want_ to take a cold shower in the morning, and seeing as Dustin had spent the night with Cam, _that_ wasn't the reason.

He didn't dare entertain otherwise; he wouldn't give Hunter the satisfaction, even in his mind.

Because somehow the crimson ranger would figure it out.

But that wasn't important now. Right now Cam was either sick or fine, but that didn't change the fact that he clearly needed some alone time. Of course, Shane couldn't really give that to him (given the possibilities of recurring illness hanging over his head) so he would have to do the next best thing and leave a select few (somebody and Dustin, who would be intent on staying) to hold down the fort. The best choice would be Tori, seeing as she was one of Cam's favorite's, and complemented Dustin well with her level headedness and immutable responsibility, but her family (like his) would notice her extended absence, so she (like he) was out as a choice.

That left either Blake or Hunter.

In his mind, Shane was rooting for Blake.

"How's Cam?"

The voice pulled him of his thoughts. When his eyes readjusted he saw Tori smiling at him cheerfully over her shoulder, throwing watchful glances at her round batter charges.

Several answers went through his mind, but he decided on the most honest one, "I'm not sure."

_That_ got their attention. Hunter shut off the water immediately and relieved Blake of his duty, keeping a hold on the towel after he dried his hands. He watched as Tori argued with herself, desperate to focus completely on the upcoming conversation but still feeling inclined to ensure the pancakes made it to being properly (and not overly) cooked. In the end the pancakes won.

When all three sets of eyes were on him (Tori's only briefly) he continued with a shrug, "He looked okay."

Hunter, as he always did, saw through it, "But he's not okay?"

Again, Shane answered as honestly as he could, "I'm not sure."

He wasn't. He wanted to trust Cam but he also wanted to make sure that the tech was okay.

"Should we scan him again?" Tori asked, flipping the doughy disks with great care, "There's also this special tea I can make him that might work and..."

Shane cut her off before she worked herself up to much and got to the main point of this conversation, "He needs…" he struggled for how to word this, "…alone time," he finished, satisfied with his choice.

By the looks of it, Hunter was not. "We can't leave him alone if he's sick," he lectured, crossing his arms firmly.

Shane fought to keep from getting angry. "I know that," he defended, then took a moment to breath before continuing, more calmly, "That's why someone has to stay with him…and Dustin."

You could tell how well they knew each other when no one questioned or even commented on the yellow ranger's immediate nomination for the job. With what they had witnessed yesterday they knew there would be no arguing with Dustin.

Tori sighed in frustration, "I can't stay," she grumbled, removing the finished pancakes from the skillet and turning the stove off, turning to fully join the impromptu team meeting. Blake silently moved to her side, resting his back against the counter.

"I know," Shane agreed, equally frustrated, "I can't either." He eyed the two Thunder rangers, staring them down equally, "That leaves one of you two."

It was a real fight to mask his desire for it to be the navy ranger.

Hunter and Blake shared a quick glance before the blonde gave him a nod, "I'll do it. Unlike _someone," _he aimed this at Blake, "I'm all caught up on my homework."

"Great," Shane declared, "then it's settled."

He wasn't happy with it, but he pushed that aside, this was bigger than him. Cam needed them gone, and Dustin…he meant well, but it would be best if Dustin had someone who could be relied on to keep their cool if things got stressful. His apprehensions aside, Hunter was probably the best choice for the job. He would be a good mediator, but Cam wouldn't let him push him around.

It was also an opportunity for team bonding, and as long as Hunter didn't reinvent the word, Shane was fine with that.

"When should we go?" Blake asked.

"Now would be best," Shane replied, receiving no argument from the rest of the team.

It wasn't like Cam would be aware of their departure as soon as it happened, but it was the thought behind the matter that counted.

Tori gave one last look at the remaining batter but Hunter waved her off, touching her arm, "I got this, you guys go ahead."

Tori gave him a tight smile in return before exiting the room with Blake, Shane moved to follow them but stopped just as he reached the door frame and looked back over his shoulder.

"Call if anything happens okay?"

It wasn't a question; it was more of an order.

And a warning.

Hunter, aware of the hidden meaning tilted his head in acknowledgment, "Okay."

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The small number of minutes that had passed by since Shane's exit seemed to stretch themselves out into years, causing Dustin to fidget nervously with the bottom hem of his shirt while he bounced lightly on Cam's bed, where he had exiled himself since being left alone.

Normally he would have used this time to look around (not snoop around because it's not like he dug through stuff, he simply observed where it was and how it was and took note of it and how it fit into the universe before moving on) in Cam's room, considering he almost never got to be in here. And he _really_ never got to be in here without Cam so now would be his best chance to get to know him better. Maybe he would have ventured playing around on the tech's computer (because a game of solitaire never hurt anyone did it?) but after what had happened in the bathroom Dustin didn't want to risk making Cam even angrier (he hadn't looked angry, or really even sounded angry when it happened, but Dustin was sure it was only a matter of time for it to happen because Cam was a very private person and Dustin kind of invaded the ultimate place of privacy) so condemned to the bed he'd stay.

If he really wanted something to do he would have changed into his regular clothes, but those were still dirty from yesterday, and even if he _knew_ where a washing machine was in this place (he had no doubt Ninja Ops had one, or two, or twelve) he couldn't leave the room because he was supposed to keep an eye on Cam…or, an ear on Cam, seeing as he couldn't really…._see_ him.

So in the room he'd stay; and for damage control, on the bed he'd stay. He shifted so that he was sitting Indian style and grabbed the bottom of his sock covered feet, rocking back and forth in an attempt to get rid of some of his nervous energy as he kept his eyes glued on the digital clock resting on Cam's bedside table. It had been 10:11 for what felt like the past ten years. Okay, maybe not the past ten years, more like the past ten minutes. 10:11 had to be the longest minute to ever exist because not matter how many times he counted to sixty it wouldn't go to 10:12. There was the slightest chance he was counting to fast but he doubted it.

In the other room the shower still ran quietly (Cam really must be meditating because Dustin can't figure any other reason for him to still be in there, unless he was waiting for Dustin to leave, but Dustin _couldn't_ leave, so he would be waiting a long time) and he had yet to hear any 'thunks', 'thuds', or 'thumps' of people collapsing, so to this point everything was gravy.

He hoped Cam didn't hate him.

He hadn't done it on purpose. Well…he _had_ done it on purpose, but not on peeping-tom purpose, on friend-is-sick purpose, which was a really good purpose, but he wasn't sure how to put that into words.

Dustin frowned and buried his hands in his hair, combing through his curls restlessly.

He almost wished Cam had been unconscious, that way they could all be focusing on that instead of…well. But now he's fine, and thinks they don't trust him because he said he's fine and insisted he's fine but if there's the slightest chance he's _not_ fine Dustin wanted to help him because he's his friend, and Cam _always_ helped him and let him hang out at Ninja Ops and made time for him and Dustin just doesn't want him hurt. It was like he sprained his ankle all over again, except this wasn't _entirely_ Dustin's fault.

He just wanted Cam to be happy, and who's happy when they're sick?

He'd even leave if that's what Cam wanted.

His morpher chimed quietly next to his ear, and he gave one last look over to the door (yes, shower still running) before he answered it.

"Hello?" he whispered quietly, making just enough sound so that he was audible for the person on the other end. If anything happened in the bathroom he wanted to hear it.

No one could say he was bad at guard duty.

"Dustin, its Shane. We decided it would be best to give Cam some space," he opened his mouth to object but Shane knew him well enough and continued, "Hunter's going to stay behind with you."

_Oh_, _okay._

It took Dustin a moment to realize Shane couldn't see him nodding before he brought the morpher back to his mouth to give a verbal confirmation, "Gotcha. I'll let you know if anything happens."

If he could see Shane he knew he'd have his leader face on, "Good."

_Good_.

The line cut out after that, leaving Dustin to pick up where he had left off. He shifted again, folding his legs up to his chest and resting his head on his knees sideways, still keeping his eyes on the clock while tapping his toes sporadically against the pale green comforter.

He was sad that Shane couldn't stay, but he knew that if he stayed away from his family for very much longer they would no doubt be suspicious about what he was doing. It wasn't like Hunter was bad… he just wasn't Shane. And, to be honest, as much as he loved everyone on the team nothing was really better than spending time with Shane _and_ Cam. It was a winning combination. Of course he would never say it because he didn't want the others to feel bad (especially Tori because she was there first) but there was just something…different about them. He couldn't really explain it.

As long as they made him happy, he wasn't going to try;

At 10:18 the water shut off, and Dustin could hear Cam get out of the shower, completely normal. He shut his mind off from mental imaging (see, super respect to privacy) and continued listening with a half ear, just enough to know if anything went wrong.

He wasn't sure how he could make it up to Cam. Apologizing, that was a clear choice, but would that be enough?

He was blowing this up, it would be enough. The only other thing he could think of…

"Are you two still out there?"

Startled, Dustin pulled his eyes away from the clock and stared at the bathroom door where Cam's voice had rang out. It had been loud, and at the bottom of the door Dustin could see the tech's shadow. He must be leaning on the other side.

"Just me," he replied, unsure if that was the right answer.

Did Cam want to be alone now? Was that why he hadn't just come out of the bathroom? Should he have stayed silent so they could talk face to face? He couldn't do that, lying wasn't in him.

"Just you?" Cam echoed, the untrained ear would call his tone emotionless, but Dustin detected just the barest hints of surprise.

"And Hunter, but I think he's in the kitchen," he paused before he added, "The others left."

His words were met with silence and he was about to dash out the door and leave Cam to Hunter because obviously he was a lot more angry than Dustin had thought he was, but the silence gave way to the sounds of the door unlocking and Cam finally exited the bathroom, fully clothed in long sleeve shirt and sweatpants, looking no worse for the wear.

They fell back into silence as they stared at each other, and Dustin wasn't sure how Cam felt about it but eventually the tension got too much for him and he exploded, "I'm sorry!" and then he shoved a hand over his mouth when he realized how much _louder_ that came out then what he meant it to.

He took a breath and whispered quietly, "I'm sorry."

Some of the hardness went away from Cam's eyes, but he didn't make any move to get closer to the yellow ranger, choosing to stay across the room, leaning against a dresser, "You were worried," he concluded logically, in the same voice he used to explain everything to Dustin.

The yellow ranger shook his head frantically, "I know, but-"

Cam cut him off, "I forgive you."

And just like that a huge weight lifted off Dustin's shoulders. Cam wouldn't lie to him; he wouldn't forgive him if he didn't mean it. By the way he carried himself Dustin could still tell he was a little wound up about it, but that was less at Dustin and more at…the uncomfortable-ness of it.

Well, Dustin knew how to fix that.

"Thanks," he exclaimed, smiling brightly. The tech returned his enthusiasm with a single nod and turned around, pulling open a random drawer in search of something. Maybe socks, Dustin always wore socks when he was at home; they kept his feet warm and toasty. He blinked and smacked the side of his head irritably, he was getting unfocused. Swallowing, he decided that if he was ever going to fully fix Cam he might as well ask him while his back was turned.

"Do you wanna see me naked?"

He had asked it in a normal voice, not to soft, not too loud, not too fast, there was no way Cam could mistake what he had said.

He had thought the reaction might be funny, (hoped, really, but you could never tell with Cam) and he was not disappointed. The tech seemed to stumble over thin air (an impressive feat for someone who wasn't even moving) and he collapsed against the top of his dresser, knocking over a lamp that he quickly intercepted and righted. After all this he took a moment to stand up properly before slowly turning and asking for clarification.

It was Dustin's turn for uncontrollable fidgeting, "Well," he started looking to the side while brushing back his hair, "I saw you in the buff, not on purpose," he looked at Cam at that one to make sure the other one knew that, but of course he knew that, because he was _Cam_ and they had just spoken about it but he wanted it out there anyway, "but that's super invasive and I figured the best way to make it up to you is if we did the whole eye for an eye thing and then we'd be square and could put this thing behind us and laugh and then never speak of it again ever."

He was impressed with himself. Near the end he even managed to maintain eye contact, and he stood at the finale and gestured broadly with his arms, trying to sell this, because this, in a way, would make them even.

Cam was of a differing opinion. "No," he replied sternly, turning his back on Dustin once more to declare the conversation over, but Dustin wasn't one to give up so easily.

He rushed over to the tech's side, "But-"

Cam didn't even let him finish, "No," he repeated again, much more forcefully, but refusing to meet Dustin's eyes.

See, see! He was still embarrassed! The only way that would stop is if they both were and then everything could be groovy.

_Heh_…groovy. He should use that word more often.

"_C-am,_" he whined tugging on his sleeve, the tech responding by ripping it away from him.

"Keep your clothes on," he lectured, finally pulling out a pair of socks (Dustin knew it) before slamming the drawer shut energetically.

Dustin jumped at the sudden noise and frowned, deciding it was time to simply take the initiative. "Just look," he pressed, grabbing the bottom of his shirt and lifting it up. He almost got to where he would pull the sleeves off when Cam intercepted him, pulling the shirt back down.

"No!" he shouted, and they were soon in the weirdest tug-a-war Dustin had ever been involved in. Cam's initial pull had caused him to stumble forward, and soon he was leaning with his back against the dresser and Cam was in front of him.

This shouldn't be this hard. Seriously, he understood Cam's modesty, but when did it apply to _him?_ Cam's a guy, he's a guy, they had the same parts, what was the problem? He just wanted to take part in the embarrassment, is that so much to ask?

He was mid-pull when he realized that pulling up was proving to be far harder than pulling down (and marveling at how sturdy this shirt was because he and Cam were two strong dudes and it hadn't so much as budged in the ripping and tearing department) when he got a wicked idea and suddenly let go.

Cam, unprepared the sudden change lost his grip and fell to his knees, giving Dustin just enough time to whip his shirt off.

He moved to undue his pants but Cam wasn't giving in just yet and tried to cut him off, and he was ready to point out he was already halfway there when the door opened suddenly, freezing them in place.

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Hunter had yet to decide if Shane's incessant interference with his interactions with Dustin were out of jealousy or protection (as he doubted it was out of bigotry) but he knew well enough not to call the other out on it, not yet. Time was on his side anyway. All he had to do was out-wait the red ranger and he would have his moment. Now, for instance, was a good example of that. Shane had been against him staying, Hunter could read it in his body language, but had wisely said nothing. Now Hunter had all the time he needed, but had respectfully declined in rubbing Shane's face in it.

At least, not verbally.

_Take that red guy._

He had finished cooking the remaining pancake batter easily, and had set off to fetch Cam and Dustin so they could eat. He found the door to Cam's room with little difficulty and knocked on it a few times out of formality before pushing it open, already beginning his spiel, "I finished up breakfast, we have…"

His sentence trailed off once his brain started processing what his eyes were seeing, and aside a sizable amount of surprise he couldn't help but feel satisfied because clearly, A) Shane did not know his team as well as he thought he had, and B) Hunter _did._

Inside the room Dustin was leaned against a dresser, shirt dangling from his far hand as he posed frozen, one hand on his waistband. This alone Hunter would have been okay with because it was Dustin and if anyone embodied the meaning of the word spontaneity it would be him. Odd things happened around him, it was simply his state of being. It was Cam's positioning, which was in no way something that was naturally Cam, that made Hunter pause. The tech was on his knees in front of the yellow ranger, assisting (or had been) in the removal of his remaining articles of clothing and what had been what Hunter had thought would had been a seemingly harmless situation turned into something completely different.

His initial reactions were followed with a slight feeling of disappointment because this meant that Dustin was _definitely_ off limits, (he was not messing with Cam) and if he had only come a few minutes later he could have caught them in the middle of the act. He wasn't sure what he would have done then, probably have left them to it, but if they _had_ been doing something Hunter would have had definite proof of his wisdom that he could use against Shane.

Dustin, was unbothered by his intrusion tossed his shirt away, batting aside Cam's hands so he could untie his sweats. Hunter could only gawk in surprise; he hadn't taken the brunette as an exhibitionist. Cam, on the other hand had donned a look of complete horror after his initial shock wore off, face lighting up bright red. The yellow ranger's motions seemed to rocket him into action, and once he realized Dustin had kept going he stood quickly, taking a hold of the others hands in an attempt to be modest for both of them.

While he had been arguing with himself over the outcomes of staying vs. leaving, Hunter decided to take pity on Cam and ducked back out of the room, giving them the alone time they so desperately wanted.

He was only a few steps down the hall when he heard Cam call out behind him, "This isn't what it looks like!"

Hunter smirked and shook his head. Cam was trying to salvage (his reputation, his modesty)…_something_, but he should know Hunter wasn't one to judge. He didn't have to prove anything to him.

"What does it look like?" Dustin's voice, quieter, as it was directed to Cam, floated out the door, genuinely oblivious.

A few hurried footsteps followed and Cam burst into the hallway, tense but relieved by the crimson ranger's presence. "It wasn't what it looked like," he repeated, nodding slowly.

To be honest Hunter wasn't sure how to respond to that, but Dustin beat him to it. "What did it look like?" he asked again, running a hand through his hair in frustration.

Cam shook his had sharply, "Don't answer that," he warned, pointing to Hunter.

It was at this moment Hunter began to believe that he might have misinformed himself on what had actually happened.

"What?" Dustin replied, still shirtless, "I wanna know." He looked back and forth between the other rangers innocently, unbothered by his state of undress.

"No," Cam lectured, keeping his eyes focused on Hunter, "you don't."

…_interesting_.

Hunter might have been wrong about their…_activities_, but there was still a chance he was right about other things.

He tucked that nugget of information away for later inspection and settled in for getting to the bottom of this.

"What's going on?"

Dustin turned his attention to Hunter for the first time since his interruption, "Cam doesn't want to see me naked," he complained, frowning at the tech who chose to focus on the wall immediately to his right in a sorry attempt to hide a blush.

Hunter smiled knowingly. "And how is that not what it looks like?" he asked, snapping Dustin's eyes back on him and earning another blush from Cam.

"What does it look like?" Dustin replied, scrunching his nose in frustration.

He was either a really good actor, or had something else completely on his mind.

Was their an innocent reason to get naked?

…for Dustin, it just might be plausible.

"It's not like that!" Cam insisted, blush dying down somewhat. He sighed and rubbed the sides of his head irritably.

Dustin rubbed his chin thoughtfully, "It _could_ be."

"Trust me," Cam informed, pushing his glasses up his nose, "it's not."

Hunter tried to rope them back on subject.

"Why do you want to…" he searched for the best way to put this, "be naked with him?"

The look Dustin gave him clearly indicated he thought Hunter was crazy, and that somehow _his_ comment had nothing to do with the current situation, and his following question supported this, "What are you talking about?"

Hunter repressed his need to roll his eyes, "You just said he doesn't…"

"_See,"_ Dustin explained, pointing to his eye to emphasize his point, "I said _see._"

While he wanted to, Hunter did not point out that there was very little difference between their statements and decided it was time to move on in order to save time.

"Why?" he asked, settling on a question that could in no way _not_ meet Dustin's standards.

Thankfully the yellow ranger accepted this. "Because I saw him naked," he started, motioning to Cam (as though Hunter would think it was someone else), "on accident! Well, it was on purpose but we thought he was passed out but he wasn't passed out and I wanted to make it up to him and this seemed like a really good way," he finished his ramble and stared at Hunter expectantly, waiting for his approval.

…so that was how you get naked in a completely un-sexual way.

Interesting.

"…Okay," Hunter admitted after a few minutes of silence.

"Okay?" Cam echoed while Dustin simultaneously cheered, "He agrees with me, I win!"

Cam frowned and pulled the arm Dustin had pumped into the air back down, the first time he had looked at the yellow ranger since Hunter had started talking to him, "No, no you don't win, and no he doesn't agree with you!"

Dustin opened his mouth to protest, grabbing onto the tech's arm, "But-"

Cam shook his head solemnly, pulling out his grasp, "No."

"Cam-" the other whined and it looked like this was going to drag on longer then it needed to so Hunter decided to put an end to it.

He cleared his throat loudly, drawing both of their attentions back to him before he swept his arm out dramatically and stated, "I declare you even."

It was Dustin who finally broke their silence, "What?"

"You…" Hunter said, point to him, "and you," he continued, pointing at Cam, "You're even," he explained as though it were the plainest thing in the world. That said he brushed past them back into Cam's room and snatched Dustin's shirt off the floor, tossing it back to him when he exited the room.

"Now follow me," he continued, waving them along, "it's time for breakfast," he finished and turned, walking down the hallway.

He couldn't help but add over his shoulder when two sets of footsteps began to echo after him, "If you still feel like taking your clothes off after that, we'll talk."

He could feel Cam glaring at the back of his head, "Stop encouraging him," he growled, but further threats were cut off as Dustin decided to wander into a different topic of conversation, and soon they were merrily discussing the benefits of pancakes vs. the benefits of French toast.

It took until halfway through their meal for Cam to completely relax, and a little longer than that before he was comfortable making eye contact with Dustin. Luckily for both of them Dustin had pretty much taken Hunter's word as law and didn't bring the subject of clothing removal up again.

This Sunday was looking to be a lot brighter than he had originally thought.

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Endnotes:

…So I know it's not completely plausible, but the idea came into my head and I just had to run with it, I was obligated to make this bunny come true. For the most part, I think it came out okay.

A big thanks to Rogue Ranger for his review, again, your comments helped me come up with this chapter, were it not for them I would have probably would have moved on.

Twenty chapters, woo! I'm excited guys!

I was originally going to end the chapter with Hunter leaving Cam and Dustin, and I had this dialogue worked out that I thought was to funny to not share with you guys.

H: "I'm gonna go now, and I'll be back in five minutes. Please have this worked out by then."

C: "You are the worst supervisor ever." "Stop that!"

D: "But I'm already halfway done!"

C: "Please-"

D: "Cam!"

C: "Stop it-"

D: "_No-ooo_"

Until next time.


	21. Doing what comes Natur'lly

Chapter 21

Doing what comes Natur'lly

I don't own Annie Get Your Gun.

Nor do I particularly _want_ to.

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X, it would seem, marked the spot.

Not the good spot, or any kind of spot Dustin had ever _thought _he might have wanted to find (the only kind he would want was for buried treasure, but he'd come to terms with his ninja status a long time ago, because you could either be a ninja or a pirate, but you could be both), but his high school pre-cal class seemed to have a different opinion on that and demanded that he be able to locate and determine any x related questions that they happened to throw his way. He had managed to figure it out in algebra when there was only one x, but now there were like, five, and then there were x's raised to powers and natural logs and critical points and derivative rules and he was completely lost in a sea of gibberish and no matter where he swam, or what he did, he could not locate the mythical x they were asking for.

After breakfast Dustin had made a quick stop at his house to pick up his homework, because it didn't matter if he was one of the guys in charge of saving the world, he was still responsible for memorizing vocab lists, and he was currently working through his boatloads of paperwork on the floor in a far corner of the lab while Cam typed away at his computer. Hunter, the lucky devil, had no homework, and had been roped into the easy job of cleaning duty. Dustin was tempted to ask if he was up for trading, but he didn't want to make it so glaringly obvious that he had no idea what he was doing. He had already suppressed any and all aggravated noises he usually made when he attempted homework and all nervous habits he was aware of (he had mentally glued his hands to his work so he wouldn't run them through his hair or mess with his clothes) and he wasn't about to let his inabilities show so easily.

He glared at the almost illegible scribbles in his spiral notebook, he had copied what the teacher had written exactly (when he had been paying attention, it's not his fault that math was really boring) but somehow he couldn't imitate her way of solving the questions.

It was infuriating.

Normally he would have asked Cam for help, but he couldn't do that today. He felt bad enough doing it when Cam was completely 100% because he knew this stuff was so far beneath the other's level of intelligence that it must be laughable, and while he might work through it patiently with him, Dustin knew that it must feel like he's teaching like…a preschooler or something. So no, he wouldn't bother Cam today; he had more important things to do. In fact he was so busy that he hadn't said much of anything as soon as they had gotten down to the lab, so focused was he on whatever project or doohickey he happened to be working on.

Well, that was just fine. Cam had enough super important things he had to do; he shouldn't have to waste his time teaching Dustin how to solve for x or whatever he was supposed to be doing.

He sighed (quietly, to avoid notice) and flipped through the pages of his textbook, desperately searching to see if it had any of the answers he desired. The worst part was that it was in English and he _still_ had absolutely no idea what it was saying. He couldn't figure out how the example in the book managed to get its answers, _and _it had step-by-step instructions.

It was official, he was a nincompoop. How he ever made it this far in school he would never know.

Frustrated, he started packing up, shuffling his papers into a semblance of order (a habit enforced on him by "the man") and shutting his book harshly, shoving it into his backpack. He began to gather his multitude of pencils, he had a nasty habit of using one for a while and then misplacing it, then he would take out another one and misplace _that_ one, and this process would repeat itself at least four to five times before he was finished with his work which meant he had to find them all when it was over or be forced to buy dozens more pencils than he actually needed.

Now, where were they?

He found one by his shoe, another one was behind his ear (so much for keeping his hands away from his head), another had jammed itself in the straps of his backpack, and then he found one that was in the rings of his spiral notebook. Tapping his head, he paused and looked at his utensils closely. One from when he started, one he lost from when he was twirling during a five minute break, one lost from filling out his vocab book, one lost from random doodling…he was missing a pencil.

He searched through all his pockets (back, front, hoodie, inside the shoe just in case) but came up with nothing, and quickly went to rifling through his backpack. He was just about to dump its entire contents on the ground when a pencil slid into his vision, held up by a tan hand.

He followed up the arm of the offered pencil and found a smirking Hunter crouching next to him, discarded broom leaning against a table behind him.

"It was rolling away," he explained as Dustin took it.

Of course it was, it was going for freedom, probably trying to make its way over to Cam so it could be used by someone with at least moderate intelligence.

His thoughts must have somehow read on his face because Hunter's smirk soon faded away into concern, and he settled down next to him, gently turning over the discarded text book and reading the title.

Instead of asking immediately what was wrong, Hunter went with a more delicate approach, "Pre-Cal bites doesn't it?"

If by bites he meant it sucked out your soul and any hidden nuggets of self worth you might have left then yes, Pre-Cal bites.

But Dustin was pretty sure that answer wasn't going to help him any in the _"try and look smart"_ department, so he settled for replying, "Yeah," and offering no further explanation.

He took the rogue pencil out of Hunter's hand and slid it into his case along with his other prizes, taking great care to close it as delicately and as normally as possible. It was much harder to do now that he was thinking about it, but he managed to slide it into the front pocket of his backpack with only minor jerking. He threw another glare at his notes while he pawed for his stack of papers to put them away too, but instead of landing on his homework his hand met more floor.

He tore his eyes away from his spiral notebook and forced himself to slowly glance over to where his notes _should_ be and was met with the site of Hunter reading through his homework, eyebrows scrunched in deep thought.

By now he should have figured out that acting on his gut reactions weren't always the best move, or that _maybe_ it wouldn't hurt to take a breath to calm down and _think_ before he did anything (even if Hunter was reading the evidence that was shrieking his lack of smarts) but the panic rising inside him overrode any thoughts he might have had and before he knew it he was wildly snatching for his math work.

Without missing a beat Hunter pulled them out of his reach, standing quickly before going back to giving his work a go-over.

_No, no, no, no, no- _

Dustin didn't bother completely rising, instead throwing caution to the wind and tackling the other teen's legs (a move the crimson ranger most certainly did _not_ expect) and forcing Hunter to the ground. This time it was Dustin who reacted faster, crawling off of the tall blond and snatching back his paper work before leaping to his feet.

Confetti rained down to the freshly swept floor as Dustin shredded the papers, completely destroying them.

He wasn't going to turn them in anyway, might as well take out some of his anger on them.

The sound of a throat clearing tore his focus away from his newly created decoration, and despite the fact that he really didn't want to, he slowly made himself look at its source. He had forgotten, in the rush of it all, that his main goal of all his hard work had been to not bother Cam, a goal, it seemed, that he had fallen incredibly short of.

The tech had stopped his work and was staring at him, searching expression on his face, and Dustin couldn't see it but he could _feel_ Hunter copying the same look.

"I'll clean it up," he offered before he could shift his weight or kick his feet or do whatever it is he usually did when he was embarrassed and grabbed the broom. He began sweeping frantically, then halted, took a breath, and began to sweep at a normal pace, keeping his eyes firmly focused on the ground, wishing for all the world it was dirt so he could melt into it and never come back up.

He was desperately hoping for Cam to simply shrug it off and go back to work, or for Hunter to make a joke about his spazzyness and start dusting but none of the sounds associated with those actions ever met his ears.

It seemed that no one was going to play along with him this time.

It was Hunter who decided to break the silence, "I have no idea what just happened."

Dustin continued sweeping, desperately trying to think of an excuse that would completely explain himself.

There was a small cough from Cam's direction before he replied, "Me either."

Because his back had been turned, but if he really wanted to know he'd just go back over the security footage later.

Dustin's mind was drawing a blank for answers, so he went to his next best option when it came to self preservation. It wasn't something he did too terribly often on purpose, because he usually just did it naturally, but in the few times he _had_ resulted in success.

When all else failed, play dumb.

Game plan in mind (and mind much more calm) he finally took his eyes off the floor, blinking at them innocently before pointing to his broom in confusion, "I started sweeping."

They weren't prepared for the sudden change in tone and by the looks of it they weren't buying his story. They didn't even look like they were on the edge of buying his story, like they almost believed it, but he stayed strong, keeping his face perfectly confused. He even added in a quizzical head scratch to bring it home.

By the uneasy pause that followed, he could guess his efforts were ignored.

Cam rose from his chair and took a few steps towards him, eying the mess on the floor. "Before that," he said tersely before shifting his attention to Hunter and asking, "The scuffling?"

Hunter shook his head, choosing to ask the real question, "What was wrong with your homework?"

Dustin turned his back to them, crouching down to sweep his pile of trash into the dustpan, hesitating a moment before cheerfully answering, "Nothing."

Nothing, it was nothing.

His hours of work and frustration and hassle over trying to find out what a stupid x was, was…nothing.

Not even worth the paper it was written on.

Hunter pressed onward, "You just tore it up."

_Yes, I think we all know that now._

"No I…" Dustin frowned, struggling to find the right words to express himself as he picked up some stray pieces of paper.

He took a breath and tried again, "It's not…" but he couldn't think of the words to finish it, because he _had_ just freaked out and tore up his homework and was _now_ doing a terrible job of covering it up. He dumped the waste into a trashcan, watching it flutter to the bottom. He smiled brightly and then tempered it down some so it was still believable before turning.

"This," he explained, pointing inside the trashcan, "is confetti."

He didn't wait to see their reactions (because that was one clear way of showing you were lying) and instead settled for crossing the room to put the broom back up in its closet.

Hunter was done with sweeping anyway.

He could hear the blonde scoff behind him before he murmured, "It is _now_," followed by sounds of him picking himself off the ground.

It was also followed by the sounds of something being picked up, and it dawned on him that while he may have destroyed his homework, he had not destroyed his notebook which was also a shining example of his incompetence. A fresh wave of panic hit him and he pretty much hurled the broom into the closet before he sped back to his corner, only to be greeted by the sight of Hunter and Cam flipping through his notes.

He never really understood when someone described their _"stomach dropping" _in fear or anticipation or something, but right now he was starting to get an idea of what they meant because he was starting to lose all feeling to the stomach area…and maybe the breathing area.

No, no he was still good; he just needed to remind himself to breath.

Several ideas flashed through his mind to fix this.

…No, knocking them out might sound like a good decision now but in the long run it might seem like a bit of an overreaction.

Finally, after was seemed like eighty five years, which was probably only a few minutes, Cam looked up from his scribbles and frowned, turning his spiral towards him and pointing to it before saying, "This doesn't make any sense."

Dustin was dumbfounded.

…_this doesn't make any sense?_

Cam didn't think it made any sense?

Like, he didn't think the material made any sense so he wasn't going crazy or was alone in his stupidity?

Dustin exhaled sharply, a huge weight lifted off of his shoulders and suddenly everything he had been holding in came pouring out of him. "Really?" he asked, walking up beside Cam and looking at him earnestly. "Because _I _thought it didn't make any sense but I just figured it was normal because it _normally_ doesn't make any sense no matter what I do and I even read the book," he squeezed the techs arm in emphasis, "I read the book Cam, and I still couldn't figure it out but I didn't want to bother you…" he trailed off and motioned to Hunter, "or you, because everyone else seems to get it and if _they_ can get it there's no excuse that _I _can't get it," he continued, smacking the side of his head lightly, "But now you say it doesn't make any sense and that's really good because I have no idea what's going on."

He finished just as he ran out of breath, and he smiled (for real) at his friends (because the lying was done with and that was good because he hated it) but instead of returning his happiness he was met by another awkward pause where Cam and Hunter gave him confused looks.

Cam, being the professional one, simply accepted his explanation with a nod. "I meant you're missing a step," he informed while gesturing to a specific spot in his notes, "So it doesn't make any sense."

…oh

_Stupid_

_Stupid_

_**Stupid**_

Of course Cam wasn't confused, Cam's never confused by anything! To even think he _might_ even have the slightest problem with something as easy as pre-cal is not only foolish but just plain…delusional!

What had he been thinking?

He hadn't, that's why he shot off his mouth.

There was no way he could escape this while appearing smart.

He started to walk away, leaving before he could make a bigger fool of himself. "…I'm gonna go over there now," he said, pointing to the door, "Please ignore me."

_Forever_

_Please ignore me forever._

"Dustin-" Cam began to call after him, but Hunter interrupted him.

"Pre-Cal sucks," he declared, earning not one, but two baffled looks from his friends.

Well, Cam's look was more miphed at being cut off.

He shrugged casually, ignoring the tech, "It _does._ It took me forever to figure it out."

"…it did?" Dustin asked hesitantly, not really wanting to stay at all but they were still talking to him so he might as well listen.

"Yeah," Hunter continued, maintaining strong eye contact, "what are you having a problem with?"

Before Dustin could say 'everything' he added, "Specifically."

And by specifically he meant _"at what exact moment did you give up and decide ripping up your homework was a better choice then asking for help?"_

Dustin paused and thought for a moment before answering, "Factoring."

Factoring was the devil, for all he cared it could die in a pit of despair and then that pit of despair could find another pit of even worse proportions to hurl itself into because that's how much agony factoring had brought him. And FOIL? You use it on food and on presents when you run out of wrapping paper, it has no place in math. Even if it's only an anagram.

"I'll help you," Hunter offered, pulling the notes out of Cam's hands (who did not appear at all happy with the exchange) and walking over to him, placing a hand on Dustin's shoulder.

"No," the brunette started, still embarrassed by his actions, "I can-"

It was Cam's turn to cut someone off, even if his choice of words wan unexpected, "How fast can you put together a bike engine?"

The yellow ranger was shocked by the sudden change in subject but caught on long before Hunter did; the blond still throwing Cam confused looks that the tech was now ignoring by the time he recouped.

Dustin scratched his head and thought about it, "Well, I haven't really timed it…"

Cam specified, "Compared to Blake and Hunter."

"Oh," Dustin said, "way faster."

The Thunder brothers may be the kings of riding but when it came to maintenance Dustin was clearly the victor. He never really thought about what he did, he just did it. He could spend hours working on a bike and it would feel like only minutes had gone by.

Cam, as though following his train of thought, continued, "You'd also be faster than me."

Faster than Cam? He's the one who built the Tsunami cycles.

Dustin shook his head because that was just crazy talk, "There's no way-"

"My point," Cam interrupted, "is that everyone has different strengths and weaknesses," He walked over and took Dustin's other side, "Math just isn't your strongest suit."

…he hadn't thought of it like that. Sure, he was barely passable at math but he was slammin' at plenty of other things.

"…It makes sense when you put it that way," he admitted, feeling relieved.

"Great," Cam replied, squeezing his other arm. Dustin finally took the time to look at him, and was met with a look of reassurance. He squeezed his arm again before letting go and slowly retreating back to his desk. He called over his shoulder, "Now don't rip up any more paper in my lab."

Dustin saluted his back, "Got it."

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He never would have thought it, but Hunter was actually an awesome teacher. He didn't mind going over things multiple times (because Dustin certainly needed it) and he explained everything _way_ better than any of his teachers ever could. It only took about an hour for Dustin to finally understand factoring and everything else in the assigned chapter, and then it only took a couple of hours to get through his homework. It was awesome, and not only did he not bother Cam, he hadn't bothered Hunter either. Or, if he had, the guy did a really good job of hiding it. He probably wouldn't stick around for so long if he was about to go postal, team mate or no, so Dustin took it as a good sign.

They were alone for the moment as they worked through the final problems his teacher had assigned. Cam had left about half an hour ago to run some programs on the computers in the main room of Ninja Ops, leaving very strict instructions for them to not touch anything or he would _"impose the need to rip you limb from limb"._

He was very protective of his experiments.

"What are you doing Wednesday night?"

Dustin almost thought he had imagined it, but one look to Hunter confirmed that yes, the crimson ranger _had_ spoken and was waiting for an answer.

It was his first make at small-talk since they had started working.

"Wednesday night?" He echoed, thinking about it.

Wednesday night, Wednesday night, Wednesday night….what did he have then?

He had work Wednesday afternoon, but as for Wednesday _night_, he was free.

"Nothing," he answered, smiling brightly at Hunter before he went back to entering numbers into his calculator.

The other was quiet for a second, watching him with enough attention to notice if he went astray in his work, but not enough to make him nervous.

They had had issues with that earlier.

"I was thinking," Hunter started casually, leaning over so that his shoulder brushed against Dustin's, "since we both pretty much missed out on Fists of Fire 2 in theaters, I could just rent it for us to watch at my apartment."

Dustin halted mid-calculation, which was really a bad idea because he would lose track of where he was and have to start all over again, but this was really work thinking about. Hunter was inviting him over. Hunter, crimson ranger, who was currently helping him learn math, was inviting him into his secret sanctum (his most private of places) to spend even _more_ time with him, indicating that he was not at all against the idea of spending time with him.

…_awesome_

To be honest, Dustin had no idea why Hunter had invited him the first time, he figured it was his attempt at bonding, or maybe he mystically knew that he loved that movie, so he had simply gone with the flow. Maybe Hunter just communicated through movies, like, that's how he made friends best. There was always something to keep the conversation going if they had one, but that wasn't even required when you watched a movie.

"Yeah man, that sounds awesome!" he exclaimed, problem forgotten as he bounced excitedly in place.

He was going to see Fists of Fire 2, with Hunter, who wanted to see Fists of Fire 2, with _him_.

But…what would he tell Shane?

The thought forced him to stop bouncing.

He always watched movies with Shane, especially that one. How would he feel if he went and watched it with Hunter and not him?

It would be like…cheating on him or something.

_Hmm…_

He'd talk to Shane about it later, get him to understand the team bonding process, or maybe he would ask Hunter if he could come too…or maybe not, they had only _just_ gotten their alpha male issues settled.

_And…_

...Cam!

That was the answer, no one could say no to Cam.

With that settled he went back to bouncing, grabbing his calculator with renewed enthusiasm to start his problem over.

"Great, Wednesday, 7 o'clock, my place," Hunter concluded, ticking off the info on his fingers, and Dustin gave him a thumbs up to show that he had received this information.

The quick patter of footsteps echoed outside the room right before Cam reentered his lab, looking to be in good spirits. He gave a searching look over all his experiments before sitting back down in his chair. Dustin was about to ask him how everything was when Cam beat him to the punch, "I was thinking it's about time for lunch, and if you…" he paused, then turned his chair around slowly, pointing at Dustin. "What are you so happy about?"

Aside from learning math?

No, Cam knew there was a new development, he could like, smell it in the air.

Before Hunter could explain Dustin decided to do it for him, for he knew only he could give this event the amount of pizzaz it deserved.

"Fists of Fire 2!" he proclaimed, bouncing to his feet and sending his pencil flying. "Hunter's house, Wednesday at 7! Be there or forever hang you head in shame!" he finished it with a dramatic arm sweep across his body finishing at his head before he bowed it gracefully.

How was that for razamataz?

His attempt at showmanship made him miss the confused look Cam threw Hunter, or Hunter's look of _"you're not invited",_ but that didn't matter, as he kept going, making sure the tech didn't have a chance to argue. He moved back to Cam's initial topic of conversation, the matter of lunch. "I make a mean grilled sandwich!" he declared, popping his head back up and going back to a more relaxed body position, "I can even add bacon…and tomatoes, if that's your thing. Just point me to the kitchen," Cam opened his mouth but the look on his face said he was still back on the Fist of Fire train of conversation, so Dustin just steamrolled on, "You know what, I'll find it myself," he finished, jogging out of the room with a wave, leaving two equally befuddled teammates.

BLT's? Totally gross.

BCT's? Totally awesome.

He would even add in extra bacon.

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There was a poignant pause after Dustin's rather vocal and melodramatic exit, leaving Cam and Hunter wordless, minds racing to recover after processing the new development. Eventually, tired of the silence, it was Cam who decided to address the situation first.

"I wasn't invited to that, was I?"

Hunter, running a hand through his blond tresses shook his head and confirmed the tech's suspicions before he dropped it forward to rest on his knee, exasperated. Cam frowned, and turned back to his computer, letting the matter slide. He wasn't about to bother confronting the crimson ranger about it, Dustin was friendly and therefore a good choice to do friend-like things with. It was only natural to prefer someone as intensely outgoing as the yellow ranger, and even more natural to avoid a sarcastic "grump" like himself.

Logically, Hunter's decision made sense.

This factored out, Cam was more than pleased to go on with his life, seemingly unaffected by it (so much so that eventually he _would_ be unaffected by it) until Hunter decided this conversation was _not_ over.

That's when everything went downhill.

"It was supposed to be a date," the blond moaned behind him, clearly aggravated by his miscommunication.

Clearly, Dustin had not been aware of this fact.

"This is the second time," he continued, and Cam had to focus real hard on his screen, squeezing his mouse in a death grip to ensure that none of the hundreds of pressing questions he had on the matter came tumbling out of him until he could determine which would be appropriate to ask first.

_Focus,_ he urged himself.

Step one, analyze the first message. The leading six words were inconsequential, of little importance, casual, everyday occurrences that invoked little to no panic generally. However, with the addition of the final word the entire meaning of its precedents drastically altered, sending Cam into a state of semi-frenzy.

Date.

_Date_.

Not _the_ date, _a _date.

"_It was supposed to be a date,"_ he had said, distressed by the fact that its current status clearly, was _not_ a date.

But he would like it to be one.

He would like to go on a date with Dustin.

He would like to _date_ Dustin.

Somehow, with everything that Cam had endured over the past week _that_ was what bothered him the most.

Something in the back of his mind was trying to tell him that this also meant he was not alone in his…sexuality, and not only that, but that Hunter was exhibiting a great deal of trust in him to share such information so easily, unless he was open about it, but Cam could barely spend the time to focus on that when he was beset by a new spectrum of feelings and despite his frequent meditation and awareness of the undisputed fact that thinking before reacting was key in _all_ situations, he found himself across the room in a heartbeat, hand on Hunter's shoulder, jerking him to attention.

The words flew out of his mouth before he could stop them.

"You stay away from him," he growled, totally unsupported, and clearly against all established facts (Hunter's assistance with Dustin, Dustin's obvious need for friendship), but somehow feeling totally right.

To say he didn't have a handle on his emotional status would be laughably understated.

The surprise should have stayed on Hunter's face longer, should have affected him to a greater degree, but the taller Thunder brother always had a knack for adaption, and shifted accordingly, throwing Cam's hand off of him.

"I didn't take you for a bigot Cam," he snarled, glaring at the tech.

Cam remained outwardly unaffected, though the other's total inaccuracy may have temporarily halted his breathing. He took a step back, for while he may feel unreasonably angry he needed to communicate his concerns more effectively, or else further misrepresent himself.

He took a deep breath to steady himself and started again, softer, though none of the tension had left his body.

"Dustin," he began through clenched teeth; he shook his head and forced himself to relax, "is my friend. And I'm not going to let you hurt him."

Hunter cut him off before he could further explain himself. "First Shane and now you? What is with you guys? You say you trust me but the first whiff that I _might_ be interested in Dustin and you think I'm going to do things of unspeakable evil to him!" He exclaimed, climbing to his feet, "Tell me, is Tori going to be the same way or is it just you two?"

The excess was nothing; Cam couldn't allow himself to be thrown at the mention of his teammates, though the fact that Hunter had already had this conversation with Shane and was still pursuing the yellow ranger did worry him slightly.

Made him wonder what they talked about _exactly_.

Cam would have to chat about it with Shane later. Right now he needed to put up a better, more sensible defense.

"You saw the way he reacted over his homework right, you were there?" rhetorical, they both obviously knew how Dustin had felt but he needed to remind Hunter.

It would also aggravate him, which was an added bonus.

"_That's_ how much our opinions matter to him. How important he holds us in his mind."

Hunter remained unchanged by explanation, not bothering to bat an eyelash.

Cam continued, shifting slightly with a fact to support his argument, "You know he's not gay right?"

Clearly he didn't, or they wouldn't be here, having this conversation, but a little belittling with undisputed evidence might be just what the crimson ranger needed to shake him out of his funk.

He was unimpressed, glaring Cam down, "You and Shane seem to think so."

Again with Shane.

Their need for conversation slowly increased to be more pressing.

Cam refused to let himself be thrown, "If you do this," he began, walking slowly towards the crimson ranger, "you _will_ hurt him. You will press him into something he won't really want to do, but because _your_ opinion matters so much to him he will go along with it."

Instead of any look of epiphany of agreeance at his sound logic, Hunter laughed in his face, moving towards him with a bold swagger until they were face to face. "I think you don't have enough faith in him," he murmured, "I think," he started again, coy smile spreading across his face, "that while his strengths might not be here," he motioned to the side of his head, "he's plenty smart enough to figure out here," he finished, patting the area of his chest over his heart, "To use your words."

Logic, sort of, a solid half-attempt that made sense, but the feelings that had settled over Cam like a dust cloud were not pushed aside, rather they intensified. He had used his knowledge; those cards were already lying across the table for Hunter to clearly see.

Now all he had left was the fickle beast of emotions.

And Cam was more than ready to ride it.

"Stay. Away. From him," he warned softly, and whatever foundations of friendliness and hospitality they had built up in their afternoon together came tumbling down, leaving nothing but crumbled remains in a desolate wasteland.

To his credit, Hunter hid the majority of his surprise at his new strategy, and opened his mouth to reply before shutting it suddenly, and a searching look assumed his eye. It dawned on Cam that one of them was finally _thinking_ before they moved into action.

This strategy would turn the conversation in a direction the tech had rather hoped to avoid.

"Are you gay Cam?" Hunter asked, leaning back while keeping up his examination, locked on Cam's eyes.

Luckily his mouth reacted faster than his brain had, and luckily his mouth was also quite intelligent. "That's none of your business," he attempted to say calmly, but the look of victory on Hunter's face indicated that he wasn't buying it.

"So that's a yes?" he murmured, and shifted a hand onto Cam's hip. Before the tech could throw it off or demand that he throw it off Hunter's face was dangerously close to his and he froze, uncertain on how to advance. Nothing like this had ever happened before, he had never studied what to do in these kinds of situations, he had absolutely no knowledge on how to react.

"Maybe I've been going after the wrong guy," Hunter whispered, and his hand was on Cam's face and something was going to happen now and he didn't know how he was supposed to feel about it and…

What about Dustin?

What about Shane?

What about the others?

Mostly Dustin, he had just been defending Dustin, Hunter had just been after Dustin, did he mean so little? Was this a game; was it all just a joke to him?

Was this his way of winning the argument?

Before whatever happened happened, (Cam would later come to address the action but never have the strength to form it into cognizance) a warning blared in his mind, there was something, a sound, and he shoved the crimson ranger away, ducking into his chair just as the door to his lab burst open, an only mildly dirty Dustin entering the room, pausing to laugh at Hunter laying down on the job before he demanded their grilled cheese preferences. He grabbed Cam and dragged him from the room, insisting a little kitchen time would be good for his rapidly fading, never-existing illness.

Unfortunately Hunter joined them only five minutes later, and Cam was forced to bare the knowing looks he threw him for the rest of the day.

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Endnotes:

Spring break everybody! Also, happy St. Patrick's day!

Wear your green or be pinched.

To MidnightMoonWarrior (who was also the first person to story subscribe!) and Rogue Ranger (times 2!) my biggest thanks, I'm glad to know that my attempts at humor are hitting the mark, and I hope the change to drama still provides good entertainment.

I know, big delay, but like I said, spring break, so I decided to take a vacation.

It also took me a while to figure out where I was going with this, I knew there would be some kind of confrontation at the end but Dustin's freakout thing took much longer to write then I thought it would and I wanted to make sure the ending conversation with Cam and Hunter was given the credit it's due.

So Dustin freaks out, Cam freaks out, and Hunter tries to be a smoozer.

I argued with myself for a while about the ending, because what, Hunter's all the sudden a huge Cam fan? But then I realized he was more or less going after Dustin originally because he was the only one without issues, and was then encouraged by Shane's resistance and his desire to prove Shane wrong, so I figured there wasn't a gigantic commitment there.

Opinions? I'd love to hear them.

Until next time.


	22. The Vigil

Chapter 22

The Vigil

I don't own Snoopy, the musical

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Thirty minutes should not take this long to occur.

A minute alone could barely be considered enough time to be utilized efficiently on a grand scale. Small scale, yes, but that had insignificant and temporary gain, as random as existence was (it was altogether derived on the judgments made within a lifetime completely, including long deliberated choices and split second decisions), perhaps a minute alone was not as mundane as Cam has previously stated.

In his agitated state he couldn't appreciate the irony that this philosophical debate of a minute's impact had taken him less than 25 seconds to mentally contrive.

Frustrated, he took a calming breath, and commanded his eyes to avert themselves from the clock. His vigil, it would seem, did his cause no good.

Thirty minutes should not take this long to occur.

To his credit he had already waited through two hours of training and half an hour of socializing, during which time was fleeting, his attention completely occupied by monitoring, dispensing, and gathering information. It was in this home stretch where his patience began to falter.

In memory to last Monday, they maintained their original seating positions, with Tori, Blake, and Hunter occupying the couch and Dustin, Shane, and himself on the floor in front of them, joking and laughing as the mindless drivel some television network had the gall to label entertainment flashed across the television.

Fifteen more minutes.

Fifteen more minutes until this joke of a show ended and Cam could get down to addressing the business that occupied the majority of his attention. Personally, it would do little to help him; he would still be in a state of inner turmoil, in fact very little seemed to relieve his mind, but it was necessary that this conversation was taken care of and no matter _his_ condition, he would like it to be taken care of immediately. As it was a delicate subject matter, it would need to be carried out in secrecy, without the knowledge or presence of their teammates.

Cam loathed the required secrecy of it all, but it needed to be done.

Shane would understand.

Speaking of whom, the red ranger had switched tactics since last week, choosing to keep his arms and hands and extra appendages to himself. He maintained his usual disposition, cheerful and relaxed, but like Cam he kept his focus forward, with occasional glances to the side to check on Dustin who, unlike his best friend, had kept to his normal habits and draped himself halfway over Cam, holding the bowl of popcorn in his lap and occasionally offering the tech pieces. Hunter, who had already been displeased with their choice of viewing material, had taken it upon himself to bore holes in the back of Cam's skull with his stare. Cam, being of greater mental capacity, refused to let this affect how he would normally conduct himself, though he was slightly more aware (as though it were possible) of even the smallest of Dustin's movements, the non-existent excess space that lay between them, and his unconscious reactions towards the yellow ranger. More then once he had caught himself running his fingers through Dustin's hair and had forced himself to stop (though he had to do it gradually or the curly-haired teen would notice) and he had almost been so occupied with _that_ minor dilemma he had almost missed that he had gained the undivided attention of _both_ red rangers.

This couldn't go on forever, eventually Tori was going to start asking questions and even if Cam felt the desire to, he would be unable to lie to the aqua ranger.

It was only a matter of time.

Another reason for this conversation to happen sooner rather than later.

Thirteen more minutes.

Thirteen more minutes until the credits dragged across the screen at a heightened television-specific pace and he could usher them out the door, with the exclusion of one. Cam had already made arrangements to soothe a portion of his aggravation. He had contacted Tori earlier and dropped a hint (and received confirmation) in the vast tracks of their conversation on Dustin's transport home. An odd and tricky subject to bring up, but in the end he managed to conclude she would take him home and Hunter wouldn't be anywhere near him.

The tech wasn't entirely sure if the crimson ranger had any remaining intent to pursue Dustin, but Cam wasn't taking any chances.

In a way it was a small consolation, if Hunter's attention shifted then Cam no longer had to worry about Dustin being pushed into something he didn't want which was…a great relief. The downside was that he had no idea how long Hunter's interest would last (forget how he felt about the matter) and if it did die out would he go back to his previous endeavor? Would Cam have to…he believed the best way to describe it is, "throw him a bone" in order to maintain this distraction?

Should he even consider it? What if Hunter was right? It wasn't like Cam was an expert in the area, what if Dustin would enjoy a relationship with Hunter? Who was he to stop that?

That was why they needed to talk.

Cam took another deep breath to maintain a steady façade, his exhale brushed through the topmost curls on Dustin's head and the yellow ranger shivered slightly, then snuggled deeper into his side. The investigating stares from Hunter and Shane bored deeper into his skull, slowly whittling away at his control.

Unconsciously he squeezed Dustin closer to him, and as he accepted an offered piece of popcorn he could feel another set of eyes join the reds.

He had no doubt it was Tori.

He was running out of time, and the little he had was moving by too slowly.

Eleven more minutes.

Eleven more minutes until two of the three sets of eyes that were slowly chipping away at his soul vanished, along with the one set that mildly alleviated their destruction. No judgment in those eyes, not even the vaguest notion of what judgment was. Merely…joy, and happiness. Joy and happiness that he so readily shared without the slightest hesitation. It was a feat that someone like Cam would never be able to achieve, a trust he never had. To so easily give away so much of yourself. It was a generosity he could never afford.

_How could anyone ignore you?_

He wouldn't, and he would do everything in his power to protect his friend, including romantic interference. He had to go with his gut for this one, and his gut screamed that this was the right move.

Forget Hunter, they had survived without him before and could survive without him now.

Ten more minutes.

Ten more minutes and the next three had declared themselves commercials, earning a groan from Dustin and a cheer from everyone else. The commercials, even the ones for the Power Rangers Alpha Squadron action fingers, were of greater artistic value than the actual TV show, and were a source of great enjoyment for the non-xanthous tinted rangers. Dustin huffed against their laughs of amusement (Cam was relieved to note he didn't take it to heart) and pulled his leg back, causing his foot to slide along the outside of Cam's leg before coming to a halt just above the tech's knee. The metal bowl balanced precariously at an awkward angle between the brunette's thigh and chest, stray popcorn tumbling out, and with a sigh he pushed his leg back down to prevent any further popcorn abandonment. The foot followed the same path until it reached its original position.

The muted chuckle Hunter emitted was distinctly unrelated to their viewing material.

Another interesting notion; perhaps this was all it would take. Perhaps Hunter only needed the…idea, or visual of what he thought was…suffering, or uneasiness might be the better word, but he needed the visual validation that confirmed his beliefs. Then again, Cam could be misinterpreting this signal, assuming it was a reaction to his discomfort when in reality it could have been an exalt of victory, in which case he was still receiving evidence, it was simply to a different concept he had constructed. Somehow he had to have invented reasons to support the idea of Dustin being gay; his excessive physical contact _could_ be interpreted as that.

Maybe he was just chuckling for the sake of chuckling.

_That_ particular thought instigated a quiet chuckle from Cam himself, and the mirth that had been radiated from Hunter evaporated, presumable replaced with intrigue, while Shane and Tori settled for slight questioning looks. Dustin, assuming it was at a commercial, smacked his thigh lightly in disapproval.

The mirth returned, but Cam ignored it.

Seven more minutes.

Seven more minutes and the fictional rangers had finally finished morphing, and Dustin (having decided this was his favorite part of the show) took to fighting their enemies along with them, swinging and swishing his invisible sword with his outside hand, though taking great care to not move his torso about too much so he wouldn't disturb Cam. The tech took a hand to steady the popcorn bowl; the last thing he desired was for the popcorn to accidentally get spilled into his lap. Knowing Dustin he would start grabbing up pieces immediately, and if the imaginary laughter from Hunter was too much to bear, how would he fair against it evolving into reality?

Carefully Cam slid the bowl off of Dustin's lap, placing it on the coffee table in front of them.

It was better to be safe than to be sorry.

Six more minutes.

Six more minutes and the rangers both real and fake were stunned speechless. The real at the mediocre, gaudy appearance of the new monster, and the fictional at whatever evil powers (it might have something to do with the bullhorn the guy was waving around but Cam had been too occupied to notice) the monster had. The Wind rangers took a moment to catch their breath before all of them (including Dustin) burst out laughing. The Thunder rangers joined their amusement, though their laughter was much more restrained.

Cam settled for remaining completely stoic. A slight feeling of warmth spread through him when Dustin turned to give him a concerned look at his non-response, and the tech quelled the inexplicable emotion as he gave the yellow ranger a small smile to assure his well being. Dustin returned his look to a much greater degree and returned his attention to the show, cuddling back against Cam gently.

If Cam had to label what Hunter was feeling he would call it amusement, but as far as Shane was concerned he had nothing.

Five more minutes.

Five more minutes and he wasn't sure if he wanted them to end. Curiosity was a fickle thing, insistent and impatient, and he would give anything to make the allotted time pass more quickly so that he can satisfy his inquiry. It seemed only natural then that simultaneously he desired that time to halt altogether, if only to prolong his interactions with Dustin, and prevent the dreaded conversation.

He feared it; he couldn't deny that, merely suppress it, bury it deep and toss it aside like trash. It was the unknown. Because he was the one who would instigate this discussion he would have a majority of the control, but it had already been proven that when it came to things of this nature that maintaining control was not his forte. No matter of preparation could help him with that.

Other things…things he had been avoiding might come up.

Still, it was a small sacrifice to give, all things considered.

Three more minutes.

Three more minutes and the "epic zord battle" was finally over, leaving the fictional ranger team to discover whatever moral the business tycoons masquerading as entertainers had designated was important this week. Perhaps it was the value of a good set of ear plugs. That was all Cam could garner from what he had picked up. It was a good thought, Lothor hadn't attempted any attacks of that nature, but it never hurt to be prepared. It could prove to be a good side project. As much as his father objected he was always looking for more of those.

Two more minutes.

Two, perhaps only one more minute, the show looked like it might be cutting out early, much to the dismay of the yellow ranger, complaining that they took away enough of the show with commercials the least they could do was stick to their thirty minute time slot. Cam would have agreed if he hadn't been so busy counting down every single one of them.

One more minute.

One more minute and the credits rolled, stimulating all non-Dustin's to give a cheer before popping up from their seats, stretching out their limbs. As much as they insisted they enjoyed relaxing after training, the rangers couldn't stand to sit still for great periods of time. It was a wonder that one of Shane and Dustin's favorite pastimes was watching movies, but Cam could tell by their playful nature that they probably only paid the movies they watched only the slightest bit of attention.

They joked, they laughed, and Cam insisted he could handle clean up (an achievement that took slightly longer with Dustin) and they slowly trudged their way towards the door, Tori mothering the yellow ranger, Blake poking fun at Hunter (leaving Cam in his debt, grateful to have the eyes away from him) and Shane, slightly worried, hanging behind.

The red ranger always could pick up when it was time to talk.

Cam gave Shane a small nod, justifying his concerns, and the other made up some line for why he was staying behind and Tori and Dustin (begrudgingly) leave, Blake and Hunter following with them.

No more minutes.

No more minutes as the door to his lab shuts behind them, and Cam activated all security measures, cameras, motion sensors, morpher tracking, the works, and after he was done all that was left to do was the business he has been waiting thirty entirely too long minutes to get to.

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Oddly enough in all Cam waiting he hadn't bothered coming up with a plan as on how to broach the subject. After a few minutes deliberation, he decided to go with the direct approach.

"What did you and Hunter talk about when you were trapped?" he asked, and a look he would describe as startled flashed through Shane's eyes for about a second before the red ranger got his game face on. To ensure they would address the proper topic, Cam continued, "Hunter and I revisited the subject yesterday, but I want details."

Shane, uncomfortable with his lack of control, chose to answer with another question. "What happened yesterday?"

Cam struggled against rolling his eyes, provocation was the last thing they needed. "You first."

He had asked first, he was the information guy; therefore he would be informed first.

_There's the line, I've drawn it._

Shane looked like he was about to object but reconsidered, finally noticing the tension in Cam's body from his prolonged agitation.

"Hunter's bi," he began, and Cam nodded his awareness of this fact, Shane continued, "He's _interested_ in Dustin."

_Not anymore he's not._

But how long would that last for?

"I informed him that Dustin wasn't gay," Cam replied, "which is when I became aware of the fact you two had already had this conversation."

There was a moment of silence where they both stewed in their own thoughts, Shane, trying to tame his frustration while Cam tried to decide on their next course of action. They had a common goal, both of them knew why they were here, it was to protect their friend. They both were just terrible at communicating this simple fact, unaware of how they should approach the other.

"He asked him out," Cam finally offered, and Shane snapped his head up, tearing his gaze away from studying the floor and before he could interrupt Cam continued, "Dustin didn't catch on though, asked for me to join them."

Shane sighed in relief before slumping against a table, running a hand across his face. "What did he want to do?"

Cam went ahead and assumed the "he" he meant was Hunter. "Movie night at his apartment."

"You're going," Shane muttered in a tone of voice that indicated he wasn't taking no for an answer.

While Cam dreaded the idea of spending any time socially with Hunter willingly, he knew it would be the best action to take, just for this one time.

"Of course," he affirmed, and Shane relaxed after he agreed with him, satisfied there wasn't going to be a fight.

The lapsed into another uncomfortable silence, and Cam, sick of all the waiting decided to probe Shane a little so they could discuss details.

"I'm worried."

And stressed.

Concerned.

Tired.

Upset.

Confused.

He chose not to elaborate.

"Me too," the red ranger sighed, suddenly tired, the weight of today's training and the stress of leadership finally weighing down on him. Cam moved to stand beside him, resting his hand on his arm as a small token of comfort. It was satisfying that Shane didn't shake him off, he didn't even tense up at the new contact.

Not like Cam would have.

Unless it was Dustin.

"I already tried to explain to him that this could force Dustin into doing something he wasn't comfortable with," Cam began, and suddenly he had Shane's full attention, eyes watching his closely as he soaked up every word. He continued, not allowing the close intensity shake him, "but he wouldn't listen."

The other frowned and made a grumbling noise in the bottom of his throat in frustration, partly because of Hunter's explicit defiance and partly on their friend's behalf.

The frustration quickly gave way to worry. "You think Dustin would go along with it?"

Cam began to explain his theory from the other night, "He holds our opinions very high; I think it's plausible for him to enter a romantic relationship purely for the sake of maintaining friendship, or staying in Hunter's good graces."

Logical.

Logical, logical, logical Cam, coming up with logical, logical, logical plans that might appear to be clearly supported and explained by concern, but were really just attempts to rationalize his very, very, irrational feelings. He had no approval for the monstrosities that were torturing his dreams, these ailments that plagued his mind. He was supposed to be intelligent, but for the life of him he could not label or place the reason to any of these feelings.

Shane advanced the conversation, unaware of his mental detour. "It could confuse him."

"Exactly," Cam agreed, pleased to not miss out on anything to important, "but Hunter…"

"He won't back down," Shane cut in, knowing where he was going with it.

Was it better having the Thunder rangers on their team?

Right now it didn't feel like it.

"And we, for the sake of teamwork, can't make him," Cam concluded, and they both frowned, glaring at an enemy they could do absolutely nothing about. It was all so frustrating. It wasn't like they could go up to Dustin, tell him to say no any time Hunter asked him to do anything. That wouldn't create a happy working environment. In fact, all that would serve to do was insult Dustin; he loathed the idea that he needed protection, especially if it was from someone who was supposed to be a friend.

How could they handle Lothor so easily, only to be taken down by teenage romance?

It was absurd.

Shane was the one to break the silence, asking the question that was on both their minds. "Then what do we do?"

_What do we do?_

Cam answered honestly, "I don't know."

He had nothing, _nothing._ When (not _if_) Hunter noticed he had no intention of returning any of his affections it would only be a matter of time before he set his sights back on Dustin, especially after both himself and Shane had told him expressly not to, for him it was just an added bonus.

"Why Dustin?"

The _other_ question that was weighing down on both their minds.

It was less of a mystery for Cam than it was for Shane. At least, if any romantic comedy worth it's salt meant anything. Opposites attract. Dustin was happy, charming, eternally optimistic, and a little rough around the edges while Hunter was brooding, cool, and smooth. If the cliché was true, it was simple math.

But even in his mind that answer sounded moronic so he settled for, "I don't know."

"What _do_ you know?" Shane snapped, then shook his head quickly before giving him a look of apology.

Cam squeezed his shoulder again, he understood, he was on edge too.

What _did_ he know?

That would be useful, to this situation.

What about Hunter could they use against him in order to…?

…oh

There was a thought.

"Hunter…" he started and Shane, who had been glaring across the room, gave him his attention, "he thinks of himself as a gentleman," he explained. The other tilted his head in thought, probably reviewing his past experiences and nodding at Cam when he came to the same conclusion.

The tech continued, "That means if Dustin's…taken," how should he phrase the rest of this, "he would no longer… pursue him."

He could see the dots connect in Shane's head as he followed along, and could immediately recognize that the results weren't ones he was at all satisfied with. Not that Cam disagreed.

Shane shared this disapproval in his tone. "So what, we get Dustin a girlfriend?"

Cam knew what he was thinking.

If Hunter forcing Dustin into a relationship was bad, then _them_ trying to egg him into wooing a girl, or attempting to persuade a girl to go after him when he had _clearly _expressed no desire for such actions was _just_ as bad. No, based on the amount of planning and deceit that would be required for such a plan, it was definitely worse.

Cam sighed, "It's not a great plan…"

It was an awful plan.

Shane agreed, "No, it really isn't," but then a thoughtful look crossed his face.

"What if…" he trailed off, looking at Cam questioningly before abruptly shaking his head, rubbing the side of his head. "No," he muttered, mostly to himself, but Cam was already curious.

"What is it?" he asked, desperate for any kind of idea.

It couldn't be that bad.

Shane shook his head and mumbled, "A worse plan."

How worse? In what way worse? If he shared it odds were Cam could fix it to suit their needs. Unless it was manipulative worse.

Nothing could really fix that.

"Tell me," Cam implored, staring Shane down.

His efforts were rewarded sooner then he expected them to be, perhaps because he was finally asking from a friend as opposed to a coworker, and Shane cleared his throat.

"I was just thinking…" he started, then looked like he was about to go back to withholding so Cam gave his shoulder another squeeze, not to hard, and that was all the encouragement he needed before he continued, "Hunter wouldn't need to go after Dustin if…" he trailed off, then looked Cam dead in the eyes, "if someone else caught his eye."

Time stopped.

It didn't, the seconds that had plagued him earlier were still ticking by, mocking him with there new found speed, but for him it was irrelevant.

"_If someone else caught his eye."_

The words echoed through his mind over and over, bouncing and reverberating louder and louder, drowning him.

How had he…?

Did he…?

He thought-

Questions cut off questions, half forming in his mind until three more had popped into there place. He forced himself to look away and take a deep breath, steadying himself.

If Shane was still unaware, he wasn't going to give himself away through panic.

_Focus._

Did he know? Was he actually suggesting Cam (and he _had_ been suggesting; Cam had in no way misinterpreted that) _date_ Hunter because he knew he was gay, or was he just desperate or-

Before Cam lapsed into a full blown panic attack he decided to get the facts.

A simple probing question would suffice. "What are you saying?" he asked, sounding raspy, but not as breathless and weak as the feared it was going to. He built up the strength to get a visual confirmation, and instead of the insightful look he had been dreading he was met with guilt, surprisingly welcome this time, and once more the self contrived tension he had piled on himself left (somewhat).

It was beneficial that Shane wore his heart on his sleeve.

He didn't know. By all appearances he had no clue, his suggestion had merely been formulated based on process of elimination.

Dustin, clearly, was not an option. Blake and Tori were off limits too, which left either Shane or Cam as the remaining nominees for people of interest. By the sound of it Shane had made it more than clear he had no interest in Hunter. Cam hadn't shared how _his_ encounter with Hunter had gone, but the red ranger must have deduced he had addressed the subject in his usual calm and collected manner, assuming he and Hunter had parted on good terms.

It was ironic he didn't know just _how_ _good_ those terms had been.

Shane's guilty look intensified when he saw him reach the same conclusion, "I told you it was bad."

It _was _bad, and Cam didn't want to do it. He really, really didn't want to do it.

He couldn't say why, he didn't want to, everything screamed at him not to, that this plan had _so many_ flaws, and was it really better to protect Dustin under the conditions that he lied to Hunter?

But then the scientist in him took over an examined the facts.

He wanted Hunter away from Dustin, he was already in a position to guarantee that would happen.

So…why not?

Shane had already moved on, thinking of a new plan in silence when Cam pulled him away from his thoughts. "Maybe not."

Surprise, worry, and concern etched themselves into Shane's features, startled that Cam actually agreed with his idea.

He opened his mouth, shut it, thought for a moment, then opened it again, "Are you even…?"

_Gay?_

Cam didn't want to get into that now. It wasn't hiding…okay, it was hiding, but skateboard lessons had only cultivated their relationship to a certain extent, this crisis (as unpleasant as it was) was what was finally pulling them into solid friend territory and he was _not_ going to endanger this newly budding relationship with such a major bombshell when it was still in its infant stages.

_Later,_ he promised, _I'll tell him later._

"Does it even matter?" Cam asked, sounding resigned (he hated playing on Shane's guilt but it was necessary).

The red ranger was torn, Cam could tell. He didn't want to say it but it didn't bother him as much if it was Cam thrown under the bus instead of Dustin.

He shouldn't feel bad; Cam wouldn't if Shane was in his place.

…no

…maybe

…he would tuck that idea away for later.

"I'm the leader," Shane insisted, "There's no point in protecting Dustin if you have to sacrifice…"

Cam interrupted him, "No one's _forcing_ me to do anything. This is completely voluntary."

Shane had the good sense to look like he was going to object before finally giving up, sighing as he rubbed a hand across his face for what must have been the tenth time since this conversation had started.

"Tori would kill us," he finally muttered, glaring at the ceiling, and Cam chuckled.

"Yes, she would."

She would maim them while berating the multiple faults in their decision making process, then berating the inexplicable amount of _terrible_ their plan entailed, and that would be _before_ she told Hunter and Dustin about it.

Yes, it would be better to keep her in the dark about this one.

The red ranger developed a nervous fidget; tension in his shoulders (while unavoidable) was greater than it should be, "Do you think…?" Shane began to ask timidly, and Cam knew immediately where he was going with this, "Dustin might be…" _just spit it out,_ "you know?"

_Yes I do._

"Personally?" Cam asked, as though it _hadn't_ been on his mind constantly since yesterday, "No, but I've never seen Dustin… fawn over anyone."

Or if fawning meant what he thought it did, he _fawned_ over every one of his close friends.

He tried to suppress the smug voice that noted that he and Shane were slightly bigger targets in the yellow ranger's sights.

"…me either," Shane admitted, and Cam could tell the same question had been running through his mind, though assuredly for a different reason. He fidgeted some more, combing his hands through his hair, "Are we…" he began to ask, eyes earnest, "is this," he rephrased motioning vaguely with his hand, "the right thing to do?"

Did it _sound_ like the right thing to do?

Cam shrugged. "I don't know," he confessed, mimicking Shane's actions out of his own stress. "But I do know that I can't stand the idea of Hunter dating Dustin."

…_oops_

He hadn't meant to say that last part; in his mind, sure, but aloud never.

He didn't know how to explain it, in what _way_ he could make that sound better-

"I'm with you on that," Shane echoed, pumping his fist, sending Cam reeling.

…oh

…okay

…just go with it.

"Great," Cam replied, settling for an open answer. He was unsure if that was the correct response but Shane was satisfied and continued the conversation, ignorant of any transgressions.

"We should probably…" he was uncomfortable with the idea, still, but bulled through his apprehensions, "check in with each other every once in a while."

"Okay," Cam agreed.

And with that they went into the dirty business of planning a feat that could only end in catastrophe.

Hopefully, it wouldn't happen until after they finished saving the world.

Hopefully.

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Endnotes:

Ba-ba-bahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

And the plot thickens!

Thank you to the increasingly awesome Rogue Ranger, I apologize for bringing up any negative feelings in the last chapter, it wasn't my intention, and I tried to make it up to you but unfortunately Cam can't be happy just yet, but it will happen, I guarantee you that.

And will Hunter be taken down a peg? You bet your keaster he will be.

Until next time.


	23. Poor Unfortunate Souls

Chapter 23

Poor Unfortunate Souls

I don't own The Little Mermaid, the Musical

Take's place after Samurai's Journey.

Yeah, that's right, I skipped it.

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Dustin had thought by now he had figured out the formula for how things worked. And by formula, he meant timing, and by worked, he meant Lothor's attacks.

And by figured he meant…figured.

Yeah, that one was pretty much right.

…and he had _really_ thought about it to…like, a lot.

It was to Dustin's understanding, and taking into account everything that happened, that whenever really big stuff went down, it went down on a Thursday. Him and Cam's experiment in the park that went terribly, the whole thing on Toxipod's island, Snipster's attack…when they caught Leonard. See, all the important stuff, all on Thursday's.

Okay, so there were still all the times the Thunder Ranger's had attacked them _before _Thursday, and even their run in with the evil pig guy had happened on a _Saturday_, but Dustin had been _really_ hoping that whatever power/person/thing (if there was any) that was watching over them would just agree with him for once and let the next monster attack happen on Thursday so he could get in his Hunter-Cam movie bonding time with yummy popcorn and happiness abounds.

He should have known better.

Instead of happy movie time they got a monster attack, and it was a doozy. Mad…tropolis, that was his name, attacked and zapped away all their powers, and then Cam zapped their powers back (but only temporarily), and then the temporary wore off and they were completely _without_ powers facing up against a giant angry monster that was getting ready to crush them, and then Sensei froze time, and Cam was gone, and he was worried because Cam was gone and while he was awesome he was still alone somewhere without any backup and he probably couldn't zap himself any power because he had already wasted it on them and then Dustin felt a little selfish because if he had _known_ they were going to fail horribly he would have just stepped out of the battle and given his energy to Cam.

It wasn't like he had done anything useful with it anyway; all he did was attack Shane and the Thunder Rangers, and then he got knocked around a bit.

Complete waste of zappy power.

If only he had known.

Sensei had managed to teleport them back to Ninja Ops while time was frozen (again, he's getting technically older and he can't account for it) and Dustin felt like he had tried to do a 20 mile run at break-neck speed followed by a swim across the ocean or something and all he could do is pass out against Shane while Cam did all the hard stuff and feel terrible about it.

If it was him out there Cam would have been backing him up (somehow, he would find a way) but all Dustin could do was sit.

It was stupid.

And then all the stupid went away when Cam came back, with the power, which turned out to be another morpher, and it was _his_, and if he had had more energy Dustin would have happily jumped up and down and cheered and danced and given everyone (including Sensei) a big fat "I told you so", even if he hadn't out loud, he had always called it in his mind. Cam was finally a ranger, which he totally deserved, far more than anybody else on the team. Dustin couldn't really describe how he felt about it, but if he had to…he would say he was proud. Proud that his friend, someone who had been working so hard, finally got what he had been dreaming of (he never said it but Dustin could tell), and he was also proud that he got to share a uniform with someone who was so amazing at everything he did.

Maybe if he got lucky, a little of Cam's genius would rub off on him.

It already had, a little bit, after all _he_ was the one who came up with the idea for how they should get their powers back, and it even _worked_, which was definitely an added bonus.

Oh, and Lothor's Cam's uncle…or Sensei's brother…except he's _not_ anymore because he's evil and that's the rules, but Cam's still a little weirded out by it so Dustin added that to the list of things he needed to take care of later and prepared to celebrate.

Except unfortunately after Cam's big reveal they didn't get the chance to give him the congratulations he had earned and most certainly deserved because Lothor was still a big fat jerkface and decided that he wanted to celebrate in _his_ way, and that meant they had to deal with multiple monsters popping up that they needed to take care of before they went on a rampage.

One monster, okay, Dustin would have been cool with that, but like, six? It was jank. Cam was finally on the team and Dustin wouldn't even get to work with him because they had to split up?

It was _so_ messed up.

Shane hadn't said anything but he had been mad about it too.

Great minds, alike thinking.

Everything had been going fine, but then the monsters un-blew up and they got called back to Ninja Ops and Dustin found out that Cam was totally _not_ fine. Some overgrown bug had stung him and made him all splotchy and there was hair growing out of his hands and if it wasn't for Shane's steady hand against his shoulder he would have been all over him, mother henning it up like there was no tomorrow (which for all he knew there wouldn't be).

Before Dustin could sufficiently express his concern a monster got big and they had to go fight it, Tori reminding him that he couldn't do anything for Cam (which just made him feel _lots_ better), but the guy fended for himself, undoing whatever voodoo had been done and helping them save the day, like it was supposed to be.

Dustin hugged him, first chance he got, happy that everything turned out okay.

And that had been how he had spent his Wednesday.

They were too distracted to reschedule happy-movie time.

Surprisingly enough it had been Sensei who suggested they celebrate this momentous occasion, even going so far as to set a location. It just happened to be an sheltered swimming area in the depths of Ninja Ops that had been used for water ninja training. Or in normal people terms, an indoor swimming pool.

Cam did not look the slightest bit guilty when they heard about that, insisting that it hadn't been important enough to be mentioned.

Oh, how they begged to disagree.

Anyway, that's how they came to throwing a pool party half-way through October. In comparison to some of the other stuff that had happened to them, it wasn't all that odd. It was Friday and Dustin had managed to nominate himself for kitchen duty and was in the middle of grilling up a mean batch of burgers. He used to be terrible at making them but with patience and time (and with his limit on eating microwavable patties met) he managed to get pretty good at cooking them. As it turned out the kitchen wasn't that far from the pool, it was a left turn down the hallway and down a flight of stairs (he had run it a few times just to make sure he wouldn't have a repeat incident of last time) and Cam had even set up a laptop that displayed a feed of what was going on in the training area (or pool according to everyone who wasn't Cam or Sensei) so he wouldn't feel out of the loop.

Last he checked they were racing, and it wasn't just Shane and Hunter (while they were finally cooperating they couldn't fight their competitive natures), but Blake and Tori were participating too, Tori naturally schooling all of them, leaving the rest of the guys to duke it out for second place.

Cam chose to sit this one out, watching instead, and Dustin was willing to bet anything he was storing this information away on the off hand chance he would need it. Hey, it wasn't something to laugh at. Like, what if Lothor came up with a trivia monster who demanded to know who their third strongest swimmer was or he would wipe out the east part of the city or like, everyone over the age of 24 or something? Yeah, then who would be laughing? It would be Cam, because he would know, and then he'd tell the monster and the monster would explode (and stay exploded) out of sheer amazement.

…maybe Dustin should pay a little more attention to the racing

Just in case.

He gave the screen part of his attention as he began to flip the patties on the grill (you had to do it at just the right moment or they could fall apart), and saw that Hunter (much to Shane's dismay) came in second this time, followed shortly by the red ranger and lastly Blake, who was immediately group splashed for his failure.

A weird feeling he didn't feel like placing crept over him, and he pulled his eyes completely away from the screen as he continued to flip the remaining patties. He ran through his cooking checklist.

Onions chopped? Yep.

Lettuce torn? Uh-hu.

Cheese? Three kinds.

Pickles? Yes.

Avocados? Of course, what was a burger without avocados?

Buns? Prepped and awaiting patties.

Mustard? Ketchup? Mayo?

Check. Check. Check.

Everything was already set up on trays, including a big empty plate that patiently awaited the arrival of the meat which he would be finished cooking in a matter of minutes.

_Not too shabby if I say so myself._

"How's your progress?"

If Dustin hadn't recognized the tone, the choice of wording was a dead give away, only Cam would make cooking sound so…technical. Not that he minded, Cam's way of dressing simple things up was something he always welcomed.

He should ask him for the fancy way of asking for time.

"Almost done," he chirped, sparing the green ranger (he could say that now) a quick smile before going back to keeping an eye on his cooking meat piles, "get bored?"

Cam didn't give a yes or no, but he still answered in his own way, motioning to the trays. "I figured I could help with the transportation," he replied, meaning _'yes'_ in Cam words, but not wanting to sound mean about it.

Dustin felt his smile broaden. This, was major progress. Now that Cam was on the team they would get to hang out even _more_ often, and Cam wouldn't be able to make up excuses to get out of it (not that he did that, at least, not anymore, but Dustin liked the certainty of it all). It was a good thing Cam hadn't taken his morpher all those weeks ago when he had offered it to him, now he's got his own color, totally meant for him because he'd been rocking the green for like, ever, and he totally earned it by himself.

_Aw_… now he wanted to hug Cam again but Tori had been pretty insistent on the idea of the meat _not_ getting burned so he sighed and pressed a random patty down instead, taking satisfaction in the fizzy/hissing noise it made.

Somehow he had forgotten that sighs could be misinterpreted. "What's wrong?" Cam asked, coming up beside him slowly.

Instead of answering Dustin gave a small laugh. As subtle as Cam was with his body language (he was the master of poker faces) he just about always went with the direct approach when it came to dealing with problems, at least, that's what he did whenever Dustin was concerned. Maybe he went about things differently when it came to like…Hunter, or the others.

He wasn't as sly as them.

"Dustin?" Cam asked again, the tiniest hints of worry edging into his voice and the yellow ranger felt an odd combination of guilt and warmth hit him, guilt at the unintentional cause for concern and warmth at…something. He wasn't sure.

"I want to hug you," he whined quietly, pushing away his thoughts and pressing down another patty, "but I have to watch the food."

Out of the corner of his eye he saw the tension in Cam's body fade away, and a small smile grow on his face.

Hah! Mission accomplished…kind of. He didn't get his hug in, but he did make Cam feel better, and that had to count for something right?

The patties looked to be at optimum brownness so Dustin began the process of getting them off the griddle, sliding them onto the plate the Cam held out for him. The trip down to the pool (he would never get over how cool that was) was short, and the patties were still steaming by the time he and Cam unloaded the trays onto a folding table they had set up for the occasion. Dustin and Tori had decked it out with a festive table cloth, Dustin even going so far as to sprinkle confetti on top, which Cam most certainly did not appreciate for cleaning purposes and appreciated even less when an impromptu confetti fight was started, but come on, Dustin's honor had been at stake.

Cam's glare had been enough for him to guess he didn't give two cents about his confetti honor.

Maybe one cent, but not two.

"Chow time!" Dustin called happily, hearing a grunt of disapproval from his tech friend (probably for not being all proper and stuff) but he wasn't going to give _any_ cents for that; merely soak in the happiness and joy of the occasion.

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It had been unanimously decided that his burgers were awesome, and while he enjoyed the attention (even he deserved to have his ego boosted every now and then) he was still at a loss for how to respond to it, but luckily Shane figured it out and took the focus off of him by shoving Tori into the pool (completely ignoring the thirty minute rule), and Tori, who was not to be outdone, grabbed his ankle and yanked him in as well.

Good ole' Shane, always knowing when to be a decoy.

Smiling, Dustin began to gather up their trash, piling it up onto the trays so he could take them back to the kitchen when Blake snuck up beside him. Out of his line of vision Hunter did the same to Cam (who had also been helping with clean up duty).

The next few seconds greatly altered how the rest of his evening would go.

Dustin had thought Blake was coming to talk, or even help, but Cam knew better with Hunter, glaring at the other and cursing himself for letting the crimson ranger catch him without his glasses on, the spectacles having been his protective shield from any pranks until now.

Before he could object Hunter tackled him, Blake mirroring his move on Dustin, and the next thing the green ranger knew he was underwater, wet, cold, and above all else, shocked.

As unpleasant as it was for him, it was more so for Dustin.

The flying through the air, the water enveloping him, crashing around him and taking away all the noise that had existed drew the yellow ranger right back to that day on Toxipod's island, a memory he had been avoiding to recreate.

The world was blurry, stinging his eyes when he opened them but as the panic built up he decided that being blind was a way worse then some small pain.

He tried to reassure himself.

He was in a pool. He was fine. He was in a pool.

He was in a pool.

He was in a pool.

He was fine.

He was surrounded by water… water everywhere and there weren't any tub sides he could reach out and touch to remind him he was fine, no, not this time.

This time he was weightless, and he tried to scramble for the light, the light that seemed so much farther than it really was, and he didn't know why he was freaking out because it wasn't like he couldn't move, but he just _needed_ so desperately to get back to where it _wasn't_ water because he didn't want to go back there, didn't want to relive that, didn't want to think about what he thought or be consumed by the darkness and he wasn't morphed this time and… Blake was fighting him, holding him back, and before the island he would have realized this was just an attempt at playing, like what Shane and Tori were doing or what Cam and Hunter were doing, but he couldn't see them, and now it was _after_ the island and all he knew was that the one thing that was keeping him from the light was Blake and he needed to get _out of the way._

He squirmed, kicking uselessly, in his right mind he would have joked about how strong the navy ranger was but he couldn't do that now, he couldn't force humor when-

His head broke above the surface, Blake a second behind him, and he breathed one glorious gulp of air before the navy ranger yanked him back under, wrestling, fighting, showing off his skills, whatever nonsense he was doing, and Dustin couldn't help but wish _he_ was the water ninja of the team because then his hits might be doing some damage, or he would be able to hold his breath longer, or maybe he wouldn't be _so afraid_.

Heat welled up behind his eyes, threatening to spill tears but he couldn't spend any time to worry about it, instead he focused his energy on escaping, throwing himself back and forth as much as he could, clawing (he would have hated doing it but by now he was beyond caring) at Blake's hands.

After a few seconds the grip slackened a little, before eventually letting go altogether, and Dustin made a mad swim for the surface, breaking above it after two strokes, odd, because it had seemed so much farther but he didn't stop to think about it, instead swimming quickly to the side of the pool, latching onto it for dear life.

He pressed his forehead against the white tiles, gathering his breath before he pulled himself out quietly, not looking behind him.

"Dude!" Blake called, confused, but thankfully not worried, or, not worried enough to get the rest of the team which was good because Dustin didn't particularly feel like explaining exactly what had just happened because it shouldn't have just happened because he was a ranger and that's not how rangers acted.

He plastered a smile on his face before he turned back around and saw that Blake had swam over to his edge of the pool, the other rangers still wrestling behind him, and whatever neutral happy expression he had been going for must have seriously failed because the concern that hadn't been there immediately found its way to Blake's face, furrowing his brows in a way that made Dustin so frustrated he just wanted to shove him back under water and run.

Thankfully he didn't.

Though running was looking like a better and better choice.

The question he had been dreading came, as awful as he had imagined it to be.

"What's wrong?" the navy ranger asked, and was Dustin just imagining it or was his voice booming so much louder then it needed to be? He lurched forward, shushing the shorter thunder brother before he remembered he was supposed to be playing it cool and immediately whipped himself backwards.

Confusion joined the concern on the other's face, but Dustin ignored it to wave happily at Shane (who had moved to join Hunter in the bothering of Cam) and Tori who, to his dismay, had begun to make her way over to join him and Blake.

He should probably start leaving now.

Blake, as observant as he was, must have read it on his face and grabbed his ankle resolutely, distracting Dustin long enough for his not-girlfriend to reach them and figure out that something most definitely was not right.

Hand clenched around Blake's he greeted her enthusiastically anyway, trying to ignore the bleeding scratches underneath his fingers. Unfortunately his hand couldn't cover all of them if the sudden inhale from Tori was any guess, and he pulled his arm away quickly, frowning at the blood on his hand and hoping that Tori would choose to worry over Blake before she got to him. The navy ranger took that choice away from him, pulling himself out of the pool and settling down beside him and Tori, unaware of what was going on but trusting him, copied his actions on Dustin's other side, leaving him mentally screaming for Shane or Cam or _somebody_ to come and save him from this thing he couldn't and didn't want to put words to.

why did he keep messing things up?

What was wrong with him?

He needed…to blow this off.

No, no, he had learned something when he had freaked out over his homework, he tried to blow that off and that _clearly_ didn't work so maybe if he just admitted to being a _little_ scared he could get out of this without ruining the rest of the evening for everyone else.

Most specifically Cam.

Cam deserved to have a worry free day every once and a while.

Dustin expected a confrontation, or an accusation…or an interrogation, or something else that ended in 'ation' but what he got instead sort of (incredibly) threw him for a loop.

Blake, taking the lead as he knew there was an issue, unlike Tori, kept his voice soft.

"I'm sorry," he murmured, and by the expression on his face, he meant it, and not just fake meant it like he had when he was evil, this was one hundred percent really-real meaning it.

…it was awesome.

Dustin had no idea _why_ he said it, because _he_ wasn't the one who got all psycho-clawy on his teammate, but he was totally okay with it. It was much better than anything he had thought he was going to say, and now all he had to do was accept the apology, maybe dish out a man hug (it was weird come to think of it, he and Blake hadn't really gotten beyond high fiving for some odd reason) and then he could make a quick escape and put this incident behind him.

But then Blake continued talking and shot _that_ plan to dust.

"I didn't know you were afraid of water," he explained, still feeling sorry, and Dustin had to squeeze his eyes shut so he wouldn't have to see Tori's reaction to that, because she knew he wasn't afraid of water, and he _knew_ he wasn't afraid of water and-

He should've just ran away.

"You should have told me," Blake continued, probably addressing Tori and Dustin had begun to try and escape to la-la land, where normal reality couldn't hurt him, and why hadn't he thought of doing that in the first place instead of freaking out under water?

Tori, unlike her boyfriend, responded predictably. "He's not."

Actually fear might _not_ be the wrong word to use. Because Dustin really didn't want to go back in, and if being deemed afraid of it got him out of doing that, then he was all for it.

"He is," Blake disagreed, and Dustin risked cracking his eyes open in time to see him offer out his bloody arm to her (they were shallow scratches thankfully, there just were a lot of them), "He freaked out when I threw him in."

"I did," Dustin confirmed, because he _had_ and maybe a little honesty would make the two blues so happy they would be willing to keep this between the three of them.

Tori didn't look like she was going to let it drop, and Blake was already in front of her in _that_ particular line, and a new nervous panic was beginning to wash over Dustin because eventually the other three rangers were going to want in on their discussion, so the curly haired teen sighed and decided to cut his losses, motioning towards the door.

"You'll get the full story if we get out of here," he offered, already standing up, and before they could object he added quietly, "please."

They shared a brief look with each other before nodding and following him out of the room casually, shouting some excuse about desert as they walked out the door.

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The kitchen was probably the best choice for this anyway. There was plenty of stuff to keep Dustin's hands occupied, and the monitor was still up and running so he would know if Shane, Cam, or Hunter decided to head their way. The only downside was there was only one entrance and Tori stationed herself in front of it, blocking any attempts he might have made at escaping.

Blake, surprisingly more trusting, simply ambled across the kitchen to the sink, rinsing away the excess blood. There was no need to get the first aid kit out, his ranger powers would have the scratches all healed up by tomorrow anyway. No point in wasting the band aids.

He wasn't sure how to begin, so he decided to go ahead and state the one thing that he _did_ know, "I don't like being underwater."

Over his shoulder Blake sent him a look that could be described as _"No, duh"_ but Tori, having missed the struggle still looked confused and demanded clarification. "What do you mean you don't like being underwater?"

Blake gave her the answer that he would have given her anyway, "Kind of what he says."

Tori rolled her eyes, "What I meant was when did this happen?"

_That_, was a good question, and both blues looked at him, eagerly awaiting the answer.

He shifted his weight nervously, staring at the floor, "…Toxipod's island, before the steam got me," he couldn't remember anything after that, and he wished he couldn't remember anything _before_ it, "I couldn't move."

He tried not to go back there, he wasn't in the pool, he wasn't surrounded by water, but he couldn't help but be dragged back down, sinking into the darkness.

He pressed the palms of his hands against his eyes hard.

Tori continued despite his distress, but her voice was gentler, "You mean when Blake threw you in?"

"When I did what?" Blake asked as Dustin replied, "Yeah" quietly.

Blake shoved away his confusion and gave his complete attention to Dustin, who still had his hands covering the upper part of his face.

"I uh…" he shifted again, clenching his eyes shut, "I haven't really…been like…_in_ water since then."

He'd been _around_ it, and when it rained or when he showered he was _under_ it, but he hadn't actually been _in_ it since the island.

Any time Tori had asked him to the beach he had made up an excuse, and he hadn't really known why until now, he just hadn't wanted to go.

His gut had been trying to tell him something.

"Like large bodies of water?" Tori asked, getting a feel for how bad it was, and Dustin nodded slowly, ashamed of his weakness.

"Yeah," he mumbled, under his breath, hating himself.

So he wasn't good at math but he was good with bikes, but being afraid of water wasn't really the same as being _bad_ at something unless it was being bad at like, living, or being a ranger, or being brave.

Somewhere beyond the darkness of his hands came Tori's voice, still by the door. "When were you going to tell us?"

_If I had known, never._

She wouldn't like that answer though, "...I hadn't really noticed it until Blake pushed me into the pool."

He hadn't been near big things of water until then. Heck, this was probably one of the reasons he hated baths so much and those had _barely_ any water.

Tori looked at him in disbelief, "What, you've just been avoiding water?" She asked, and Blake spared him the need to answer that question by moving the conversation forward.

"Dude, this is really something you should address."

_And exactly **what **about it should I be addressing?_

Dustin threw his hands up in frustration, anger conquering his flashbacks, "I'm not the water ninja! I don't have to be _in_ water!"

He didn't, that was actually a fact. Sure, the earth was mostly covered in it, but he was a pretty determined guy when he had to be and he was sure he could avoid it for like, ever.

Blake tagged in for Tori, taking up the offensive, "Don't you think it might come up? Something like this you can't let go-"

"Actually," Dustin interrupted, taking deep breathes to avoid crossing into hysterics, "I think this is exactly something you should let go!"

Forever.

Forever and ever and ever and ever and they should never, _**never, **_talk about it again.

They let his yell hang in the air a moment, both slightly surprised by his outburst. Tori recovered first, determination setting on her face and Dustin knew that this was far from over as she said the words he had been dreading since they entered the kitchen.

"I'm telling Shane."

"No!" The word erupted from him before he had a chance to think about it, but he was already across the kitchen, latching onto Tori's arm desperately, urgently trying to make her stay, "It's not a problem."

Blake came closer but stopped to give him breathing room, crossing his arms stubbornly, "Based on what I _just_ saw, it is. It's a huge problem."

"Aren't you afraid of anything?" Dustin snapped and the navy ranger had enough sense to look slightly taken aback at the uncharacteristic burst before his game face was back on, stronger than ever.

Meanwhile Tori tagged back in.

"Maybe a bad haircut," she joked, resting her free hand on top of his in a way he was sure was supposed to be comforting, but it did little to help, "but I don't think Lothor's going to throw anything like that at us."

Blake tagged in, "Water, on the other hand, is far more likely."

It wasn't _fair._ They had back up, they had each other, and he had nobody. He had nobody to understand why it was bad or why he needed this to be let go or why no one else should know because it wasn't pride when you knew you were letting your friends down.

It wasn't pride when you knew you were letting the world down and if you could just _maybe_ ignore it for long enough it would just _go away._

"I'm _fine_," he insisted, and suddenly she was the one holding on to _him_ and he was the one uselessly trying to tug himself away.

"No, you're not," she countered, moving one of her arms to his shoulder and trying to get him to look her in they eye, but he kept them resolutely closed. "We need to fix this," she urged.

"Then fix it!" He shouted, finally reopening his eyes. They stayed quiet this time, shocked by his sudden agreement, but he couldn't…he needed…

"Just…just don't tell the others," he continued quietly, staring at the floor. "Please," he added, almost inaudibly, "I know we shouldn't…keep secrets from the team but…just, just this once," he whispered, trying to fight back a sudden wave of emotions,

"Please."

He wasn't sure if his begging had worked because he refused to take his eyes off the floor, but after the blues had a silent conversation Tori gave a sigh. "…Fine. But we're not putting this off," she grumbled, then, despite her displeasure, she slowly wrapped her arms around him, and he pushed his head into her shoulder, trying so hard to keep it all in.

"Okay," he whispered, voice cracking, and another hand rested lightly on his back, silently attempting to lend him strength.

Even through all the comfort, he couldn't help but feel he had just made a deal with the devil.

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Endnotes:

Poor Dustin, now it's his turn to not catch a break.

As always I would like to thank Rogue Ranger for his detailed reviews. I agree with you completely, Cam is totally a better opposite for Dustin than Hunter is, I threw that particular comment in for ironic purposes. And yes, Shane's still completely oblivious; I'm still working on how to get him aware.

Now, on to the chapter.

Let me start by saying I have no idea what the weather is like in California in mid-October. If it's anything like the south then odds are there would be no problem having a pool party, but once I got the idea for an indoor training/pool area I decided to run with it because A) it would offer enough seclusion and none of the rangers would have to explain it to there parents, B) it would offer and area for Dustin to work through his issues in, and C) now they have a pool they can always use regardless of weather.

Just wanted to explain that I did not invent this pool on an odd whim.

Moving on-

Dustin freaks out again, but this one's been planned for a lot longer then his homework freak out so there was no way I was going to cut it, and I didn't want to just throw in another filler chapter for distance so I went ahead and wrote it, as planned, and I think it turned out pretty well, considering the issues I was having. For some odd reason I just wasn't feeling this chapter. Its okay though, can't win them all.

It felt appropriate that this chapter be named after another Little Mermaid song, kind've like a call back to when he got thrown into the water.

Until next time.


	24. Music of the Night

Chapter 24

The Music of the Night

I don't own The Phantom of the Opera

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Obviously stepping into ranger status required a fair bit of schedule adjustment on Cam's part. On top of his expected day-to-day duties of zord maintenance, coding, side projects (the side projects weren't necessary but there was no way he was going to give them up), experiments, and communications work, he was required to not only monitor, but also participate in all ranger training as well as any team meetings that were called, whether they be for practical purposes or social calls (though he had strongly argued against his required presence at the later, seeing as he already had, as the phrase put it, "his hands full").

To add to this his father had persisted in his private training, allowing him to "catch up" (something he greatly objected to, seeing as he had proven that he was at the very least on the same level as the other rangers).

Early on, in a moment of weakness Cam had allowed himself brief comfort in the delusion that he was capable of handling the new duties handed to him all in stride. Surely with his intelligence, strength, and total devotion to Ninja Ops and the team (and with no other pressing matters on his hands) he would be able to juggle it all with ease, or, if the worse came to it, with only moderate difficulty.

After a week and a half of this adjusted schedule he came to the conclusion that he had been sadly mistaken.

Despite his previous assumptions, he was not super man. In comparison to his teammates (he didn't call it ego when it was stating the truth), maybe. In comparison for what he needed to fulfill his new job essentials he fell incredibly short.

It all came down to two incredibly frustrating and unalterable facts.

They were that one, no matter _how_ much he willed it, desired it, or focused on it, eventually his body needed simple things like _rest_ and _sustenance_ and _bathing_ that had seemed all so insignificant and unaffecting to his pre-ranger days that were now biting out huge chunks of his time that he _could_ be utilizing in a much more efficient manner. Sure, he _could_ take thirty minutes to eat lunch, but then he might as well be engraving an invitation for Lothor to assault the world in a specific manner that _could_ have been prevented if _only_ he had taken that time to finish up his code/gadget/zord modification.

And sleeping? When had that come to steal so much time away? Who in their right mind had eight hours to waste doing nothing?

So far he had managed to cut his down to five, sometimes four on a good day, with coffee and caffeine pills substituting what he missed out on, and he _would_ have put effort into researching a way to whittle off even more hours if he had had any time to spare on it. As useful as it would be in the long run it affected the short run too drastically.

This tied into fact number two; there simply was not enough _time._

Cam couldn't fix that. Hours slipped by without him noticing, even working full speed, and he had to shove his duties as technical support, team mastermind, along with all his training into one day and it was slowly taking a greater and greater toll on him.

Surely his father had noticed it by now, but had yet to comment on it.

And all _that_ was discounting any of his social commitments. _He_ had been the one insistent on tackling the Hunter-problem (as he so called it) and one could not woo, or be wooed without ever having the time to _interact._ So far Hunter hadn't strayed, from what he could tell; Shane had been keeping close tabs on Dustin and each night had given him the all clear but that (at least Cam feared) would only last for so long.

That was why late one night, or early one morning if specifics were asked, Cam decided when he finally slumped over his desk, overcome with exhaustion, that something about this matter needed to be done.

The only question left, was what?

He couldn't _make_ more time, he didn't have time to even _begin_ to contemplate the specifics (as entertaining and beneficial as it would be) necessary to pull off such a feat and eventually (despite his the ranger energy coursing through him) his caffeine abuse was going to start having adverse effects on his body, so he needed something to help he could produce relatively quickly. It was times like these where he sincerely wished that just _one_ of his friends were a little smarter. As per usual, this thought was followed by an immense surge of guilt, but the idea always remained. If just one of them knew…just something, how to manage the zords, or input data, or _know_ how to use (and be trusted enough to use) his computers in order to input the data he would be able to have enough time to himself to really _think_. If he was really lucky, he might be able to breathe too.

But one couldn't get to greedy.

_If only,_ he thought, flicking an odd clump of lint while he attempted to motivate himself to begin the journey to his bed, _If only there were two of me. Then other me could do all this junk while I focused on the team._

He didn't really think about it much, not the technical implications; at least, while he tapped his fingers idly, he simply amused himself with the idea of clone him doing all the dirty work. Maybe clone him could be the one to woo…_distract_ (he was more comfortable with that) Hunter. He would much rather be relieved of _that_ particular duty. And then clone-him could sweep (if Dustin ever didn't) and dust (because he wasn't going to) and clone-him could even do the meditations his father forced on him to ensure he "sustains a calm and steady disposition" because who really needed that anyway?

And then _he_ could train and laugh and smile and joke with the others and maybe try and find a way to con Dustin into sleeping in his bed again.

The last part took a few seconds longer to process due to his sleep deprivation, so for sanity's sake (to repeat, he _was not_ superman) he concentrated his attention on his first train of thought.

If only he had a clone of himself.

The cloning process itself was highly controversial, and to be honest, not in an area that Cam was strongly suited for. He was more of a chips and circuits kind of guy, which lead him to the idea of…robot?

No, no robot, he loathed even the idea of focusing on a robot. He was far too preoccupied with managing the zords and power disks to be able to throw anything together that would be durable enough for what he needed and besides, a robot would only be able to focus on one task at a time, at least, physically. Its compiler on the other hand, if hooked into the Ops computers, would be able to run a plethora of programs simultaneously. To be able to move and managed what he needed he would require constant teleportation (which would assuredly wear out the machine) unless…

Unless it wasn't chained to one specific holding unit. Instead of a "body", the program could generate a temporary (perhaps even semi-permanent) physical representation of itself in order to carry out any tactile interaction required of it, then, when finished, it could simply withdraw itself back into the mainframe and continue its business there.

The possibilities were endless. If Cam actually managed to pull off this…hologram, it would have to be, it would be able to materialize within the full reach of his network, which aside from Ninja Ops included his vast system of cameras and monitors.

What had started as a wishful hope was beginning to fabricate itself into a very profitable and life saving scheme. He could create a holographic representation of himself to take care of Ninja Ops technical requirements; he had already unknowingly started to create an A.I. to assist in supervising his day-to-day routine, he could simply build on that.

With a second wind secured, Cam shrugged off the remnants of his exhaustion, popping a few more caffeine pills before setting down to work. If he finished this, successfully, he could finally get down to the wonderful, wonderful business of sleep.

He was proud that he was able to dare to dream of such a thing.

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When he went to have his weekly Dustin-Hunter (with the former secured at work and the later occupied at the track) status report with Cam (there was no specific time set, it usually occurred whenever the green ranger could fit time in for him on Saturday) Shane found his co-conspirator passed out on top of his keyboard, hands still posed for work as he caught up on what was obviously much needed sleep.

Frowning, Shane caught sight of a caffeine pill bottle, lid discarded and contents mostly gone. With a sigh he closed the lid, setting it off to the side while taking a look around the lab. It had grown much messier from his last visit, confirming his fears that Cam (as much as his friend denied it), simply had too much work to do, and while he wasn't fond of actual cleaning, he _was_ fond of being _clean_ and the clear disregard for his preferences meant that things in the world of Cam were getting pretty chaotic.

Finishing his examination he went on to think of how to tackle A) Cam right at this moment, and B) Cam exhausting himself.

Both were important, but Shane settled his attention on the more short-term of the two.

By the looks of it (and based on the fact he hadn't woken up as soon as Shane entered the room) Cam needed this sleep desperately, so waking him was not an option. He wasn't sure how long the tech had been passed out over the desk, but he _did_ know that he hadn't chosen his position consciously; being that it looked extremely uncomfortable, making Shane's choice very clear. He needed to move him, preferably, to a bed.

He'd work on the second problem after that.

Cam's room wasn't far from the lab (the green ranger hated inefficiency) and Shane already knew the way to it from the last time he had to drag Cam's body there (i.e. the skateboarding incident).

At least this time he wasn't conscious; that would certainly help to cut down on the number of protests he would get (despite his injuries Cam had been insistent that he could hobble _"just fine, thank you"_ but luckily Shane had Dustin there to back him up (one of the few things they had actually agreed on at the time) and forced the tech into submission).

Smiling at the memory, Shane decided that the least disturbing way to carry Cam would be bridal style. Not the most manly, but that wasn't really the important thing right now was it? He kneeled down quietly beside Cam, taking care not to step on any of the assorted gadgetry that littered the area around his desk. Gingerly he slipped his right arm under Cam's knees, sliding his hand along the front of the seat edge while simultaneously wrapping his left arm around Cam's shoulders, taking great care to lift him away from his keyboard before shifting him against his chest and raising him out and up, successfully getting the green ranger into carrying position without waking him up.

To think that less than three months ago he had been a sorry excuse for a ninja.

Cam was unaffected by the transition, simply huddling closer to Shane, shivering slightly at the cold air. Shane halted his actions, furrowing his brows in concern at the fear that Cam may be getting sick (as doubtful as it was given his ranger powers, only Dustin was unlucky enough for that and _that_ had only been a reaction to an attack) and decided to look into it once he successful got Cam into bed.

He didn't weigh…well, to say he didn't weigh much would be a lie because he sure as heck wasn't _light_, but given his training Shane would say that Cam was a safe, kind of medium amount of weight, not too terribly pressing, but not exactly weightless. He was, Shane amused himself with the thought, just right.

Dustin would get a laugh out of that one.

The trip was an uneventful one, even with the added worry of not jostling Cam. It was the actual getting him on the bed part that seemed to be the complication. When Shane had picked him up he had simply gone for the easiest angle that Cam presented, which so happened to have his head on the left side of Shane's chest and if Cam's bed _hadn't_ been positioned right up against a wall there would be no issue. Unfortunately, it _was_, and currently Shane had Cam positioned so that if he dropped him off the easy way, his head would be at the foot of the bed. Changing where the pillow was, that wouldn't be so hard. Changing all the blankets that had already been painstakingly tucked in, much more difficult.

What to do, what to do?

Well, when all else failed, go for the ninja approach.

Closing his eyes, he focused his energy on producing a small tendril of air to pull/shove the blankets down slightly so he could get Cam in (he would have considered using his powers on Cam but the guy seemed cold enough as it was and he didn't want to risk it) and slowly moved into a crouch on top of the bed. He turned carefully, making sure Cam didn't hit anything, until his back was facing the wall.

Almost done, all that was left to do was to lay Cam down and swiftly jump over him, cover him with the blankets and call it a day, but not before making sure there was no alarm to disturb him.

He got as far as the laying him down part when he hit another road bump. Cam, it seemed, had a vice-like grip on his shirt and even as his legs hit the bed he refused to pull his head away from Shane's chest, instead clinging tighter and giving off a small humming sound in protest. Shane's attempts to pry away the green ranger's fingers were only met with more protesting sounds that he had been steadily ignoring, until Cam decided to kick it up a notch and mumbled, "No…"

It was soft, but distinctly audible and sounded…it sounded sad.

It wasn't angry or… stubbornness out of the desire for warmth...

It was simply _sad_, and something about his tone made Shane freeze on the inside and really stop and take a look at Cam.

The tech was distressed, brows furrowed, hands clenched and he clung on desperately, murmuring quietly, begging, "…please."

He wasn't sure why it surprised him, why Cam's subconscious desire for comfort or support seemed so bizarre. Sure, it was Cam, but he was still human, and like everyone else he needed a little contact from time to time and so far (given that he was a private person and his father was currently a guinea pig) he had been starved of that.

Cam would deny it if he was awake, if he ever knew about it, or heard of it, but in that moment Shane knew he couldn't leave his friend alone.

Not when he had to spend the majority of his life that way.

Course changed, he pulled Cam back towards his chest, instantly earning a contented sigh of relief from the tech before he continued his adventures in dreamland, much more happy. Shane smiled fondly at the sight (this was as unguarded as he had ever seen Cam) and before he realized it he was running his fingers through his dark hair, as he had seen the tech do with Dustin many a time. It was soft, the strands were fine but there were many of them, giving his fingers plenty of territory to cover. A sigh, this one sounding…at peace, would be the best way to describe it, was the only reaction he received, causing Shane to gently pull his hands away before the other could get to accustomed to it.

He liked Cam, but he was _not_ going to pet his hair for the next four or so hours.

The shoes (both his and Cam's) and the single pair of glasses came off with relative ease, flung carelessly onto the floor in an unorganized fashion (excluding the glasses, they were placed on the bedside table) before Shane delicately arranged Cam and himself underneath the blankets. As expected (by now) Cam glued himself to the red rangers side, lower body curling against him while his upper draped across Shane's torso, giving another satisfied sigh before settling down, completely collapsing into sleep.

For the most part Shane took it as a sign that he shouldn't have gotten up as early as he had. Sure, wanting to get to Cam while he had time had its merits, and he wouldn't take arriving early _today_ away because it helped out his friend, but as he shut off the lights and was enveloped in immense darkness, he decided that the world was trying to give him an excuse to get a few more hours of sleep.

And _that_ was something he was more than willing to do.

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The first thing Cam semi-comprehended when he scraped against the edge of consciousness (it was not a desired run-in, he didn't think, but couldn't remember why) was that it was pleasantly warm.

See, he knew it was _pleasantly_ warm because the last thing he remembered (also an undesired activity, remembering would warm his brain up and then a warmed up brain would plunge completely into consciousness whether he liked it or not) was a distinct _unpleasant _coolness, attacking unceasingly against his skin, that was so much worse than _now_, in the comfortable haze of rest. His neck hurt less too, not that he remembered why it would be hurting (he refused to think about it, clinging to sleep).

Temperature deduced, he simply decided to enjoy it drifting in and out of small catnaps.

The second thing he noticed, after one of such naps of cat, was that the reason he was pleasantly warm and positioned comfortably was A) because he was in a bed, and B) there was someone else _in_ the bed.

On a normal occasion Cam would have immediately jolted himself into waking once this dawned on him (as past experience would indicate), however, this was _not_ a normal occasion, and constant abuse to his body and sleep withdrawal left the tech too debilitated to assemble the energy required to do such a feat, so instead he settled for allowing a small smile to grace his face as he burrowed deeper into the body next to him, appreciating its presence.

It was warm…redundant…but... it was warm.

Cam celebrated this, it was so much warmer than when he was all alone, in his lab or in the kitchen or in his bed.

This warmth, he decided, was _his_ warmth.

It was _his_ warmth and no one else's (or it better not be, Cam would not tolerate a warmth that tried to get around to other peoples beds).

This, of course, was obvious. The warmth was in _his_ bed, holding _him_, making _him_ warm.

Clearly this was a sign.

His warmth had a heartbeat, pulsing steadily beneath his ear, broadening Cam's smile because not only did he have warmth, his warmth was alive and breathing, and definitely _not_ a figment of his imagination, or a cruel joke he played on himself by falling asleep with a heating blanket.

Yes, his warmth was a person.

He loved his warmth. It was calming... and comfortable…and nice.

And his.

His warmth had an arm around him, steady, like his heartbeat, trailing down his back, carefully holding him (allowing him) closer, allowing him in, and this, besides the warmth and comfort was what Cam loved the most.

This, _his_ warmth, wanted him happy, was willing to make him happy which meant it…_he_ cared about…_him_ and-

Cam didn't (couldn't) think about it any further.

It was far too exhausting.

He sighed, content, and was about to drop back into slumber, pulling his arm around the warmth tighter when he heard another sigh (from the man-warmth), also happy. He couldn't simply ignore it so he struggled to shrug off his chains to unconsciousness so he could give him his attention (or what little of it he could offer).

It was the least he deserved.

The warmth noticed his movements, but mistook them for complete awareness, "I didn't take you for a cuddler," it whispered, loud enough for Cam to hear.

His voice was warm.

It made sense.

Moments passed before he could reply, too long for an alert Cam, even an embarrassed one to answer. "Never…" he mumbled into the warm shirt, side of his lips brushing against the material, "never had anyone…to cuddle."

He scrunched his nose at his eyes incessant demands to be closed and instead (in rebellion to them) turned his face so that it was completely in the warmth, the soft fabric caressing his nose.

He liked that.

Happy (and clearly not in complete control of his senses), he pressed his lips against the cottony clothe, smiling as they prodded against the solid warmth underneath.

His delayed reaction, and his deliverance (not to mention his following actions) were enough to indicate that Cam was still very much unaware of himself. Shane, bewildered by the oddness of it all decided to end his premature attempt at conversation and let Cam get back to sleep, "Fair enough."

But Cam, or, semi-conscious, talking-through-exhaustion Cam was now up and semi-running. A thought, strong enough to permeate him with worry struck him just as he was about to drift off again, shoving him back into barely awake and demanding to be addressed.

Slowly, he turned his head again, flopping his cheek against the warmth's chest lazily, "You…" he started, timid…almost afraid, "come back?"

Seconds passed, feeling like eternity and Cam was about fall into a panic when the warmth replied, "Back when?"

Cam took a moment to process this, struggling to place exactly _what_ he…oh, there it was.

"Later," he whispered, rubbing his hand against the warmth's far side, tracing the contours of his abs inattentively. The warmth shivered at his touch, funny because he was warm and _couldn't_ be cold, but he seemed too occupied with finding him an answer, so he wasn't going to bother him about it.

"Here?" The warmth asked eventually, confused by Cam's question.

It was a simple question.

Would he be back tomorrow?

"_Yes_," the tech answered, sounding not nearly as exasperated as he felt (being as he had not the energy to convey it) and he waited very patiently for his answer.

What he got was a stunned silence, the silence (he was okay with it at first) carrying on far longer than necessary, making him realize that this warmth-

This warmth might not be his.

In reality Shane was still struggling to find out where all this had come from, and when it dawned on him that a response was required of him it was too late, "I… I don't-" he stumbled, searching for the right words.

But the damage was already done.

Thoroughly exhausted and barely functioning, this hesitation struck at Cam's deeply guarded insecurities, and in his current state, he had no barriers, no way to defend himself against the onslaught of emotions that wrecked against him, whipping him into as much of a frenzy as his sleep deprived body would allow. It was deep and utter rejection, echoing mocking voices in his mind as he began to weakly struggle out of his... the…the lying warmth's reach.

This warmth was not his.

It had never _been_ his.

He was stupid-

Foolish-

How could he…?

_You thought you could be-_

Deep inside something cracked and words (though he had vowed himself to silence) spilled out, "…you don't want..." he cried weakly, unable to finish because of the overwhelming feeling of shame, pulling away from the warmth and fighting to get off the bed, thrashing pathetically against strong arms.

_You don't want me?_

Completed in his mind it had devastating effects, crashing against him like a lost ship tossed about a stormy ocean.

"Cam-" the warmth _(not his)_ called, and Cam couldn't notice it's growing distress, couldn't listen, had already listened and _that_ hurt so much so how could he listen now?

"no…" he whispered, shoving his legs into action, managing to get enough force to raise himself to the sitting position, but the warmth, ever taunting, followed him, refusing to let go.

"_Cam-"_ It called again, wrapping an arm around him and Cam couldn't fight it anymore, the tears he'd tried so hard to repress slipping down his cheeks silently and he couldn't…he couldn't…

He was _so_ tired.

He stilled his movements completely and the warmth, who he couldn't force himself to completely hate, pulled him against him, onto his lap and secured another arm around him.

Cam's breath hitched, and he buried his face against the warmth he once loved, "You don't…" it was hard, but he forced himself to say it, "want me."

It wasn't a question, it was a statement.

An absolute fact.

The warmth began to pet his hair, causing him to tremble at the touch.

"No one…" he whimpered quietly, no longer talking to the warmth, merely explaining his existence, or trying to, but he was interrupted.

"I'll come back," the warm, solid voice said, dangerously close.

He almost missed it, as lost as he was, but after a few moments he began to comprehend what he had actually said.

He didn't take any comfort in it.

It was what he wanted to hear, or what he _had_ wanted to hear but now it's later and now it's not saying it because it cared; now it just wanted him to shut up so it could go back to sleep and not be bothered until later when it could go and forget him forever.

"…no," he keened, beginning to struggle again, but the warmth held firm, keeping him close to it.

"Cam," it said again, and this time its hand moved against his face, turning it up and he couldn't see it, but he knew the warmth's face was there, forehead touching his.

"I'll come back," it murmured, wiping the tears away, "I promise."

And just like that the pain…the unrelenting sorrow disappeared and Cam sobbed in relief, burrowing himself into his warmth, vowing to never let go.

Sleep came easily afterwards, drawn in by humming and the rhythmic feel of swaying, gentle strokes through his hair.

He wouldn't remember it in the morning, and maybe it was better that way.

-:-:-:-:-:-

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Shane was stunned (floored was more like it) by Cam's incredibly strong response to a moments hesitation. Before, yes, he had thought that _maybe_ Cam might have had a few issues with isolation (he had never really thought about it seeing as Dustin usually spent any free moment that wasn't dedicated to Shane with him) but now, after seeing that performance (he almost felt guilty for observing Cam's most intimate feelings when his friend had little to no control over himself) he could safely say that that _maybe_ was now a _definitely_.

He continued running his hands through Cam's hair, marveling at just how many new problems he was becoming aware of in the past 24 hours.

As the tech settled down, deflating into him, he couldn't help but wonder how many others he might be missing.

Cam was an elusive study, obsessed with control, and _clearly_ the only reason Shane even knew that this was _this_ bad was because Cam had gone and worked himself into the ground. Hopefully that wouldn't happen too many more times in the future, not after he talked with him about it when he was back to his regular normal self, and that took care of one problem, but it still left him with the issue that the team support needed…some support.

Shane had thought they were doing better. They had regular meeting about the team, both in person and via morpher, Cam had let him begin tutoring him in the ways of skateboarding, they were both protective over Dustin, and that was only the stuff _he_ had involving Cam. He knew Tori spoke to him at least once a day, making sure he stayed social, and Dustin was practically in Ninja Ops every night (when work allowed it), so what were they missing?

What were they not giving Cam that he needed so desperately?

…he didn't know, and he couldn't figure it out.

Maybe it was the whole living alone thing that bothered him. Sure there was Sensei, but he mostly stayed in the main room of the Ops, choosing to stay in his habitat. Unless Cam visited that room often (something Shane sincerely doubted because he seemed to be living in his lab) he was pretty much on his own.

That _could_ be it, or maybe he just needed more hugs or something.

Suddenly exhausted by the entire ordeal Shane hung his head wearily, resting lightly against the top of Cam's while he took some long steady breaths.

_Tomorrow,_ he decided, completely worn out, _I'll worry about this tomorrow._

Cracking an eye open, he glanced at Cam's clock, the red glowing lights a stark contrast to the absolute darkness. Ever laboring away at its job the lights shown 10:47 am.

_Later today,_ he amended, chuckling lightly at his surroundings deception.

Plan amended, he shifted so that he was lying down again, Cam still mostly on top of him, clinging to him tightly.

_What to do, what to do?_

As Shane joined his teammate in the world of dreams, he took comfort in the fact that he knew one thing that could help his friend.

He would come back, just like he promised.

* * *

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* * *

Endnotes:

My-oh-my Cam certainly gets around doesn't he?

First Dustin and now Shane? He moves quickly doesn't he?

…in his defense he didn't really know about Shane.

Anyhow, I would like to thank Rogue Ranger for his in depth reviews, they always make my day! So if last chapter was a roller coaster how was this one?

To answer your first question I would say it's a little of column A and a little of column B. For the most part Dustin meant alone in the room, but the underlying fear/concern was that he was alone in general. Question number two, no coincidence, I'm just trying to spread the love a little, I have to remind myself that they're a team and _everyone_ needs a little spotlight.

Question number three, yes, Ursula is one freaky lady.

Ha! I finished this two days early! Mostly because I hadn't realized I had fallen into a pattern, so me being me, I just had to break it.

Hopefully for the better, right?

So…yes, not what I intended to write, especially after what happened last chapter, but sleep-deprived Cam is super-honest Cam and this was an opportunity that couldn't be passed up. I argued with myself, thinking that he _might_ have overreacted, but then I remembered what it's like to be awake for far too many hours without sleep and decided that it was okay. Cam has weaknesses just like anybody else.

Also, may I present the beginnings of Cyber Cam! May we see more of him to come!

Until next time.


	25. By the Sea

Chapter 25

By the Sea

I don't own Sweeney Todd.

Takes place the day after the pool party.

That's right, we be backtracking

* * *

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* * *

The scratch marks were fading, and by tonight they would be gone. In Blake's opinion they _should_ have been gone by this morning, seeing as they were only scratches, painless and mostly not worth mentioning, but _they_ seemed to disagree with his prognosis, stubbornly decorating his arms whether he liked it or not. It must be a ranger quirk, he decided. Any wounds from Lothor's attacks pretty much healed overnight, so Blake was thinking that maybe wounds that were afflicted to him by his teammates or himself did not warrant immediate healing power. Perhaps this was just his morpher's way of telling him to play nice and/or not be stupid.

If that was the case his morpher was _way_ behind on that one, Hunter had been occupying that job position for years. Though in his defense, Blake had been riding him just as hard.

It was a brother thing.

_Speaking of whom_, Blake thought as he adjusted the position of his backpack strap on his shoulder, _he's finally decided to throw himself into the mythical "mess"_.

No matter how much Blake pressed, Hunter would not explain it to him, as though it were on a need to know basis.

Whatever, no skin off his back (as long as it didn't throw off the Winds too much, he and Hunter could pretty much handle anything thrown at them after everything they'd been through), though Blake wasn't ashamed to admit that he was slightly bewildered by the suddenness of it all. This wasn't humoring (not like it had been for the movies, Blake had pressed him into getting a date for that one), this was Hunter in full-on predatory mode. _Now_ he was all for the subtle acts of wooing, actually interested in pursuing a relationship. Of course Hunter being Hunter, he had to make it a challenge.

At least, that was all Blake could come up with when his brother announced to him that he was switching his sights to Cam, as opposed to continuing his pursuit of Dustin.

Unless he knew something Blake didn't know.

They didn't keep secrets, not normally, but when it came to someone else's sexual identity (if Hunter figured it out), his brother always kept that information to himself, choosing to let the person address it whenever they chose to. He considered himself a gentleman that way. He even (even after multiple insults and jokes) said he was going to emulate Blake's chosen approach to dating (or acquiring a person for dating) and take things slow and steady.

With Cam, Blake was pretty sure that would have been necessary whether Hunter liked it or not.

Then again, Blake didn't really know the guy all that well.

And that was probably something he should look in on. He had been so focused on Tori he never paid that much attention to the rest of the team (excluding Hunter). Maybe he should try and hang out with them more often? Sure, he was going to be seeing a lot more of Dustin, but that wouldn't be in the friendly-social kind of way.

It would be in the "Trying-to-make-up-for-causing-your-phobia" kind of way.

Tori had filled him in after the party had winded down when he had managed to get away from Hunter long enough to make the call. Blake had shocked him and thrown him into the ocean where he _would_ have drowned if he hadn't been morphed (because from what Tori had described, Blake _had_ to have paralyzed him for at least a little bit). Tori hadn't known the full story herself (until the party) because she had had her hands full with evil-Blake, but she had wondered what had taken the yellow ranger so long to make it back to the shore.

By the sound of it he wasn't the only one dealing with a guilty conscious.

That was something they'd talk about today.

They decided just before they had to end their conversation that they needed to meet to plan their next move. After all, nothing said romance like helping a teammate you accidentally wounded.

_Enough of that,_ he chastised, speeding up his pace to make it to the beach faster.

Blake had a morning shift today, so the meeting was to take place in the late afternoon before they had to make it to Ninja Ops for training. They chose the beach on the basis of process of elimination. They didn't want it to take place anywhere where Cam had security measure set up (as doubtful as it was that he'd be steadfastly watching the cameras, being caught on tape would still allow him the opportunity to review the footage and discover their dirty secret), and the only place they could think of that _might_ be safe was out on the water (and even there might not be the best place, but Tori figured the all the excess noise would drown out their conversation).

They were posing as though Tori was teaching him how to surf (she would, a little for looks) and they would pause halfway through, choosing to float on their boards and "flirt".

It wasn't the most ideal of set ups, but it would have to do.

Blake loathed the idea of it all, mostly it was the not-telling Hunter thing that got to him, he told Hunter everything. When he tried to explain that he didn't keep secrets from his brother Tori had countered that she was protecting _her_ brother (a low blow, he couldn't point out the lack of blood relation seeing as how that didn't apply to him and Hunter), and if it was Dustin's choice to keep this from the rest of the team then they had to respect that.

He didn't like it, didn't even understand it (it was pretty clear that Shane and Cam were Dustin's best friends, and why he didn't want them to know (why he was afraid to share) was beyond Blake), but he had come to accept it.

It wasn't like they had a lot of options here.

Slowly, the beach came into view, more than half full with sunbathers, families, and surfer wannabe's (he had seen Tori surf before, he knew what the real deal looked like) and he pressed forward, drifting off to the right. He passed Tori's van, empty; she was probably changing, and he made his way over to the bathrooms to do the same thing. When he finished he found her leaning against the side of the vehicle, hand on one board while another rested against the passenger door beside her.

She looked good (she always did, but he never really knew how to tell her), sporting white swim trunks with a blue stripe down the side, her top echoing the same color. Smirking, she gave him a small wave, wiggling her fingers at him as he approached and stepped aside so he could chuck his backpack into the van so they could get going. He picked up the extra board and they made their way down the beach, their destination, a private cove. It wasn't accessible by land (at least not easily, and Tori had already learned her lesson about Ninja streaking when it wasn't necessary) so they would have to paddle to it on their boards.

The lessons were…hard. While strictly for appearances (and at the moment it was the only date-like thing they had done this week) Tori took it very seriously, but not seriously enough to not get a kick out of every time he kissed salt water, which was _a lot_. He had balance, he was great at balancing, you couldn't handle a motocross bike without balance or even go very far as a ninja without balance but for some odd reason staying _on_ the surfboard seemed to be something he just _could_ _not_ grasp. Kind of like Shane and motorcycles. He hadn't gotten to witness that particular run-in because he had been to busy babysitting Hunter while he completely failed at skateboarding, but Dustin had been more than willing to fill him in on the details at work the next day, enthusiastically waving his arms in what Blake assumed was a not-completely-accurate but still totally-hilarious impersonation of Shane crashing into bales of hay ("_The poor innocent bystanders")_ he had moaned_._

With all the sneaking around they were doing, plus the withholding of key information from their teammates, he knew better then to ask for Tori to keep his inability to surf between them. He could only hope that it wouldn't get back to Hunter (considering how hard he had been riding his brother about his lack of skateboarding skills he knew he would never hear the end of it).

After about half an hour of sucking up seawater Tori called an end to her "teaching" (she was taking sick pleasure in watching him fall he just knew it) and beckoned him out a safe distance from the shore. She paused a minute, kicking her legs idly in the water while running a hand through her hair before pulling it into a new pony tail, low at the base of her skull. It was cliché, and he could never tell Hunter about it (partially because he wouldn't listen and partially because if he _did_ listen he would spend the rest of the day mocking him), but the way the light hit her…just so, she looked gorgeous. Then again, he thought she was beautiful after hours of training simulations and miles of jogging, but out here, completely in her element she just…glowed.

Like there was no place else she'd rather be.

He knew then, that moment, that he would be willing to fall off any board as many times as she wanted just so he could spend time with her like this, so he could witness another moment like this one.

Any teasing Hunter gave him would be well worth it.

Unfortunately the spell of comfort and unhurried leisure that had cast itself over them had to be broken, as nice as it was; it was not the reason they were out here. Now it was time to get down to business.

Casually he leaned down, dipping his hand into the water and running a meager handful through his hair, cooling him off slightly now that the sun evaporated the majority of the water that had been on his body. While carefully making sure none got into his eyes, he began, "I assume you have a plan."

When they had gotten off the com last night she had sounded determined, a clear indicator that she was going to figure something out to help Dustin and her nod confirmed it, even if her face remained cheerful and relaxed. Before he had met Cam he would have called all heir precautions paranoid, but after seeing everything he can do, it was more than appropriate now.

"It's pretty basic," she replied, voice light, "we gradually help him work through his fear while keeping it a secret from the rest of the team."

_Yeah, that's pretty basic_.

He kept his sarcastic quip to himself, instead choosing to feel all warm and fuzzy on the inside at the mention of "we". She didn't say "I'll help him," which he thought she was going to say because she had known him longer, and Blake was the one who caused this mess in the first place. Instead, she had said, "We'll help him," including him in the solution instead of just assigning him to interference and decoy duty.

That was something else they needed to address.

"And how do you suppose we do that?" he asked, not mockingly (he reserved that for the others), simply prodding for the details.

Her face stayed the same as she playfully splashed some water at him, but her eyes hinted at her awareness, "We need to talk to him first," she declared, blocking her eyes from his return splash, "get him to give us all the details."

He wasn't sure if she was purposefully not acknowledging the cloak and dagger portion of their scheme or if she was so focused on helping Dustin that it wasn't as high a priority, but for Blake this was a very important part of their plan. Perhaps that was for the better, if they divide and conquer they could guarantee success.

While flicking excess seawater off his hands he glanced nonchalantly at the horizon, sun firmly fixed in the middle of the sky, "I was talking about the keep it secret part."

She rolled her eyes dramatically, wagging a finger at him as though she were playfully chastising him, "It shouldn't be too hard."

He resisted the urge to roll his eyes in return. "We're on a team of ninjas; we are trained by a ninja master, and we are currently having this conversation floating on surfboards in a secluded cove for fear of monitoring from the super genius that pretty much runs this team. It's going to be a little hard," and then, to make keep her from being distracted with useless things like anger he added, "What should we do?"

She took it all in stride, only her fist curling slightly betrayed any annoyance she felt. "Cam's…he's probably going to be super busy now that he's a ranger right? Odds are he won't even notice if we 'invite' Dustin along for a few beach outings."

Everything would have to take place at the beach, for exactly the same reason the planning meeting was taking place there.

"The footage we can't hide, so maybe…" she trailed off, staring hard into the distance and allowing the slightest race of worry leak onto her face, her brows furrowed as she tapped idly against her board.

Blake gave her a light splash to snap her out of it.

"Should we tell Cam?" he asked, eyes steady against hers. It would be a lot easier if they did; he might even be able to give them a few pointers, heck, even give them proper procedure on how to deal with this kind of thing. As good as they were, and as busy as Cam _might_ be, eventually the tech was going to smell something suspicious, and he would _know_ it was an issue if they kept it secret.

Tori reacted as he feared she would, "No!" she exclaimed, frowning at him slightly (pretending it was from the splashing) before sending another wave of water in his direction. As he rubbed the salt out of his eyes she calmed down slightly, enough to continue her board tapping, "Dustin trusts us to keep this a secret, and I'm not going to go behind his back-"

"He's going to find out eventually. You know it and I know it and he might not be as inclined to secrecy as we are when it happens," he kept his tone calm, his voice light, and allowed a small smile to grace his face, but his frustration was clear by the tight grip he had on the edge of his surfboard.

Her eyes frowned, and he knew she had already reached the same conclusion, "I know," she murmured, pushing a stray hair behind her ear, "I just…I don't want to hurt him."

Blake finished the part of the sentence she hadn't wanted to say aloud in his mind,

_More than you already have._

He gave a sigh, drumming his hands against his board to accompany her nervous tapping, "Fine," he said, after finishing with a flourish, "We won't tell Cam. But he'll still have the tapes-"

"Well we'll just have to keep him too distracted to look at it," She declared, whipping her hair back and regaining some of her fiery spirit. He was pleased by the change in mood, but it didn't overwhelm his growing confusion. What did she mean?

"Exactly how do you… what, are we going to sabotage the tsunami cycles? Break something every mission so he'll be too occupied with fixing things to notice?" He dipped his hand back into the water to run some more through his hair, thinking about how they could make something like that work.

Then again, the act of repetitively breaking things could be a clear sign to the green ranger that something was up.

Tori frowned, then smiled again, "No, not something like that. We need…" she tucked the rebel hair back behind her ear, eyes narrowed from thinking.

We need…

_What?_ He thought, not risking a glance at his waterproof watch because he knew that time was flying by to quickly.

We need…

_What do we need?_

As he looked over at Tori, the answer came to him.

_We need **someone** to distract him._

Obviously, it could be one of them but…Hunter, now there was a guy who could thoroughly "distract" the new green ranger. Romance, or attempted romance, would be way more successful at diverting Cam's attention than anything Blake and Tori could think of to throw at him.

It was perfect.

"Hunter," he declared, true smile lighting up his face, "I'll get Hunter to distract him whenever we work with Dustin. He's been wanting to get closer to him anyway."

He wouldn't say why, that wasn't his place, and besides, Tori made it pretty clear where brother's privacy stood as far as she was concerned, so he was sure she wouldn't mind in the long run.

Tori's eyes were skeptical, "You can get him to go to Ops whenever we need him to, no questions asked?"

It would take a little more finagling than that, and a lot of hinting and finesse, but at the end of the day Blake was sure he could get it done. If worse came to worse they could always just wait to act whenever Hunter decided to go on his own.

"Yeah," he replied, and the brief nod Tori gave him in agreement lifted an immense load off of his shoulders, allowing him to finally relax. "When do we make our first move?"

"How about a week from now?" She asked, wringing out her hair, "give Dustin some time to cool down."

Blake gave her a thumbs up, smiling enthusiastically, "Sounds like a plan."

Hopefully the yellow ranger would trust them enough to just go with it.

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-:-:-:-:-:-

This is a tub

_A what?_

A tub.

_A what? _

A tub.

_**Oh**, a tub!_

It hadn't changed any since Dustin began his staring contest with it, it hadn't moved, it hadn't emptied itself, it just stood there, all gleaming and white and plastic-y but not made of plastic-y and stupid. He had filled it up himself, a safe medium amount, so as not to overflow, and he _had_ been staring straight down into it once he shut the water off, but his reflection and the… there was a lot of water in there…and it made him queasy, so now he was huddled on his bed, legs tucked up to his chest, hands wrapped around his ankles, and his eyes just peaking over the tops of his knees so he could glare at the stupid water filled tub-of-evil through the open door of his bathroom.

He had thought he was over this. He had _taken_ a bath like, the day after they had gotten back from the island and he hadn't freaked out then! Sure, all his muscle soreness and concern over Shane and slight discomfort at being old and having memory loss _might_ have distracted him a little...

Okay, now that he's actually listed it, it distracted him a lot. But now it was today, the day after he shared his dirty little secret he hadn't even known he had, and for some odd reason he couldn't bring himself to get any closer to what was clearly a small amount of water.

What kind of power ranger was he?

It was a tub; it wasn't even that deep! You couldn't even _float_ in a tub, in fact you could barely even _think_ about floating in a tub because…because…because that's how stupid tubs were!

That's right, he's not going to let a stupid tub beat him, he's the yellow ranger, pilot of the Lion zord, super hero extraordinaire! He could take on anything!

Dustin was across the room before he knew it (before he could even think about it) and suddenly he was back at the edge of his partially filled tub, once more glaring down at his murky reflection.

_Stupid tub. Stupid water. Stupid face._

Frustration and anger welled up within him, and in a flash of hatred he slammed his foot down to where his face was reflected, plunging it into the water, and before he gave it too much thought he brought his other foot down beside it.

When the anger died down a little he looked up, glancing at the mirror. He could see it, he was standing in water, two feet in, he could feel it consuming everything from mid-shin down but he wasn't…

He wasn't freaking out about it.

…He wasn't freaking out about it!

He was standing in maybe a foot in a half of water (closer to the foot but Dustin didn't let that dampen his spirits) and he, Dustin (Waldo) Brooks was completely owning the being-in the water process! He, lords and ladies, had defeated his foe, vanquished all evil, destroyed his tormentor!

He should call Tori; let her know he was all cool, no need for secrecy, because _obviously_ he was fine!

To complete his celebration he decided that he could take the plunge, get the rest of himself wet, clothes or no, and he got himself in position, slowly walking to the far wall so he could delicately slide himself in. Sure, he _could_ crouch, he _could _just set himself down like everyone else did but he wasn't everyone else. He didn't say it, barely thought it, but deep down he knew he was stalling, deep down he knew he was still afraid of what might happen when he got the rest of himself wet, if the flashbacks would come back or the fear, or the para-

He stopped thinking about it, instead focusing on shuffling his feet forward one at a time until he was slanted, and he braced one arm against the long wall beside him as he shifted down, and he's almost there, he just had to very delicately, very carefully-

"Hey Dustin!"

The noise was enough to startle him, throw off his groove, and he lost whatever grip he had and went tumbling down into the slew. His head banged painfully against the side before he went under, but he didn't bother concentrating on _that_ because suddenly he was in the water again, it was everywhere, it was still awful, nasty, terrible and-

Flailing, he yanked himself out of the tub, throwing himself over the edge of it, spilling a majority of the water onto the floor. He gave a weird cough-sputter kind of thing before he looked up and realized that someone (from the voice and the shoes he judged it to be Shane) was staring at him, wondering exactly what had just happened, and Dustin began to scramble to his feet, mind racing to find an explanation.

His feet (once his friends, once his proud weapons) betrayed him by slipping on the wet tile, and he _would_ have done another floor belly flop if Shane hadn't interceded and crouched down in time, catching him before it happened.

It was a real struggle not to curl up into his friend, not to hug him or try and acquire some kind of comfort from him because he doesn't deserve it.

He was Dustin Brooks.

Yellow Ranger.

Pilot of the Lion zord.

Super Hero extraordinaire.

And he _couldn't _take on anything.

He couldn't even take on a bathtub.

What kind of ranger was he?

Shane patted his back a few times as Dustin coughed up what little water (cursed, stupid water) went down the wrong way.

"_Dude_" the red ranger muttered, incredibly confused, and Dustin waved him off, putting on a smile.

"You startled me," he explained, because he _did,_ and he ran a hand through his hair innocently, wiping some of the water away.

Now came the question he couldn't really explain.

"What were you doing?" Shane asked, looking back and forth between his fully clothed self and the tub. Dustin noticed that he hadn't bothered trying to pull away, despite the fact that the yellow ranger was excessively dripping on him.

He felt guilty about this (there was no reason why two of them should be covered in water) so he gently pulled himself away, but accepted the hand that helped him to his feet.

"My…" he began, looking down at his feet, and rubbed a hand across his chest, "shirt was dirty."

That would do.

Shane took his hesitation as embarrassment and gave a small laugh, clapping him gently on the shoulder, "You know they have washers for that."

The normal conversation, their usual snippets, bring Dustin out of his funk slightly, enough to let him give a more sincere smile when he gave his reply, "It's full."

Shane's smile broadened, "Then put on another shirt," he joked, handing him a towel and Dustin distracted himself momentarily from his failure by drying himself off. "Come on," Shane continued, still smiling at him despite his minor freak out, "I came to get you for training."

Training, right, that thing you did so you wouldn't suck as much as you already did.

Right.

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Dustin only had one dry towel left after he finished cleaning up the floor after training. He was bone tired and wanted nothing more than to get clean and pass out on his bed, but this mess (this stupid water) demanded to be cleaned up, and he _needed_ it to be banished from his bathroom completely, any pools, puddles, or congregations must be destroyed.

The last towel dangled pristinely on a wall wrack, reminding him, as he collapsed against the floor, of the happier, better hygiene times he had before the island. When water wasn't so bad.

When he wasn't so weak.

When he could do better.

Sighing, he shoved the shower on, blazing hot, and began discarding his clothes, carelessly throwing them in the direction of his laundry hamper to join the multitude of soggy towels.

He thrust himself under the water, closing the curtain behind him, and tried to think about better things, happier things, anything that didn't have to do with-

His mind went to Shane and Cam and he was instantly happier. He tried to imagine how awesome it was when Cam finally got to be a ranger, or how happy he was when they liked his cooking, or how caring and nice they were even when they didn't have to be. The attention they gave him even when he didn't ask for it. How Shane's smile let him know everything was okay after he got scared of a bathtub, or Cam's soft concern after he stumbled over a rock during their 5 mile run. They made things better.

His mind wandered to the rest of the team.

Tori, she made things better too, she cared about him, protected him, helped him without…without making him feel terrible, and she was one of his first _real_ friends. And Blake was awesome, he made jokes with him at Storm Chargers, gave him tips at the track, and sparring with him was both challenging and super fun. Hunter, once you got past his dark and brooding side was a lot cooler than Dustin had thought, helping him learn cursed pre-Cal while making him laugh.

He had a great team, he had the best team. They were the greatest friends he had ever known (Sensei included, as stern and teacherly as he was), and Dustin knew he was willing to do pretty much anything for them, anything at all. He knew that they probably all felt the same way, that they wouldn't mind if he was afraid of something but-

He cursed himself for letting himself get pulled back into that, but the thought remained.

He was failing his friends; he was failing his team, his family, because he couldn't get over this one little thing.

It shouldn't be an issue, it shouldn't be a problem, _he_ shouldn't be a problem. They shouldn't _have_ to worry about him being near pools of water or the ocean, that shouldn't have to be something that's on their mind.

What kind of ranger was he?

Why couldn't he be better?

As calmly as he could he shut off the water, skin red from abuse and toweled off, slipping into his sleeping clothes. He piles on the pillows when he got to his bed, normally something that delighted him simply on principle but tonight it did nothing, and buried himself deep under them, trying to cocoon himself into a peaceful place.

The thoughts of Shane and Cam get him through the night.

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Endnotes:

For the record, this chapter takes place the day after the events of Ch 23, and a week before the events of Ch 24.

A big thanks to Rogue Ranger for his review, always very much appreciated, and to answer you question about last chapter Shane got there early in the morning, they slept for a bit and the freak out happened around one. And then they went back to sleep. As for the second question Shane's to busy trying to look after everyone else to bother feeling anything at the moment, but he'll get there, guaranteed.

Check it out JDTB90 ; it only took 25 chapters to get to Blake's POV!

Will I be doing him again? Maybe, but to be honest it's probably only going to be for strictly him and Hunter scenes because I encountered minor difficulties writing Tori-Smitten Blake.

In other news I have official decided to make this a Shane/Dustin/Cam story. Don't worry though, I'm not going to leave Hunter out in the cold, he'll get him some lovin', it just won't be from any of them.

Until next time.


	26. No One Is Alone

Chapter 26

No One is Alone

I don't own Into the Woods…still…again

Takes place a week after the events of chapter 25

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Hunter hadn't seen Cam in over a week.

Wait, no, that wasn't not true. He'd seen him, at training and at debriefing, and he had even managed to finagle him into a thirty second phone call until Cam realized it was purely for social reasons and hung up claiming "he was too busy to deal with his stupidity". Harsh as the words were, and his tone was meant to be, Hunter couldn't help but feel all warm and snuggly on the inside because Cam's undertone had totally been 'Thank goodness I'm busy because if I wasn't then I would have to force myself to not flirt with you for a while you hunky-hunk-hunkerson'.

Okay, so Hunter might have paraphrased him (and channeled Dustin a little), but Cam was definitely feeling something along those lines, he just knew it. Ever since the almost-kiss (how long ago was that? Two weeks ago) Cam had been acting especially snippy towards him, which anyone who wasn't Hunter would take as a sign that he didn't like him, but the crimson ranger knew better. The extra-mean was a cover up. Cam wasn't entirely sure how to approach the blond anymore, he was confused (even though Hunter knew he was gay and _Cam _knew he was gay _and_ he knew _Hunter was_ bi and into him), and until he could decide how to approach the situation he had decided to take the safest route and just push the blond away.

But this was a good thing. _This_ meant he was at least considering it. If he wasn't interested in Hunter at _all_ he would have already shot him down (Cam's brutally honest and could care less about people's feelings who weren't Dustin (but that seemed to be pretty much everyone's approach on things)).

Instead he was all stricken over it, wondering if he should give in, if he'd be willing to _let_ Hunter in, and _ohhhh_- the drama's just killing him.

Not too shabby for about five minutes worth of work.

Hunter hadn't left him alone either, he wasn't going to leave off on the offhand chance he would get pushed aside and forgotten. Yeah, he'd agreed to take it slow, but that didn't mean he couldn't pop into Ninja Ops for a social visit, come bearing gifts of frozen yogurt (it's good for you and it tastes like ice cream no matter what Dustin and Blake said) and 16 GB flash drives (even if Cam scoffed at them, at least Hunter got a laugh), and call him at random times on his morpher (if he set a time Cam could ignore him, this way the tech _had_ to pick up).

His end game was to grow on Cam slowly over time, kind of like a rock in his shoe, or something. Sure it would hurt when you step on it the first few times, but after a while you don't even notice it.

Not that he was a rock or anything.

Grinning underneath his helmet, Hunter pulled off the track after he finished his lap, moving to where he stowed his gear so he could get a drink of water.

It was a good day to ride, Hunter had gotten up early so he could get some time in. Normally he would have waited for noon, but he had plans today. He had given Cam his space and plenty of time to work himself crazy, and now it was time to pop in for another spontaneous visit, maybe bring him a late lunch or something. He didn't want to force anything but… he liked Cam (and he really _did_ like Cam, he was witty, sarcastic, and took awesome to a whole new level), and he really wanted to be with him, even if it was just to be made fun of the entire time.

As much as he would love to pick up where they left off that Sunday all those weeks ago, he couldn't rush it, though he had slightly made up for that at the pool party. _That_ had been a good day, tackling Cam into the pool had been well worth all the glaring he had received when it was over. Even if the guy was wearing a shirt there was plenty of…physical contact (something he could tell Cam was just getting used to), and he wasn't the only guilty party (some of Cam's responses seemed a bit unnecessary).

Until Shane showed up it had been their greatest exchange of flirtation to-date. Once they got company though Cam pulled back into his shell, only reaching out when necessary.

Stupid red ranger making him all shy.

Clearly it was going to be a long road for Cam to deal with his…emotional…sexual issues, but Hunter was willing to wait for him, willing to be there to help him along.

He looked at his watch and frowned, startled that so much time had passed. It was already 12:30 and he was still out here?

_Okay, what's the plan? _

He could do a few more laps (he was in the zone today, and there was no real rush) leave the track around 1:00, go home, shower, have a snack, get some homework done, pick up some food and be at the Ops around three or four for some major Cam time before they had training.

Blake (the dumb loser) had _almost_ come to the same conclusion himself, Tori had managed to convince him into surfing lessons (they had their first session last week and from what Hunter heard he was terrible, a good thing because he had been starting to get sick of listening to his brother go on and on about how bad he was at skateboarding). Last Saturday they had had a private session (Hunter wasn't buddy-buddy enough with Cam yet to get a peek at the security footage he knew the tech probably had, but one day he wanted to see for himself how awful his brother was at surfing with his own eyes) but _this_ Saturday he decided to let Dustin tag along as well.

It was good that he was being friendly, but his brother really needed to learn the meaning of the word dating because right now he was doing a terrible job of it.

He had said it before and he would say it again, poor Tori.

Shaking his head at the new level of pathetic his brother's antics had reached; Hunter shut his water bottle and tossed it into his bag, then jetted back onto the track, increasing his speed to intimidate the other riders.

He might not be as competitive a racer as his brother was, but they still needed to know who was boss.

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For once in his short, barely lived out life (though compared to like, a two year old he had light-years of experience, but that wasn't the point) Dustin found himself in the position of not wanting his shift at work to end. If it dragged on into infinity, so much so that he had to live there, surviving off of vending machine food, washing up in the back sink, sleeping underneath the counter at night, he would be more than happy to do it, just so he wouldn't have to leave.

It wasn't that he loved working (he _did_ love his job, it was like, the best thing in the world and as Cam had said he super rocked at it) and Kelly was nice and all (not even yelling at him despite his nasty habit of randomly disappearing whenever there was a monster attack) but the real reason he didn't want his shift to end was because he was dreading what came _after_ it.

Yes, today was the day.

Today was the day the blue rangers were going to begin to help him get over his fear.

That's right, today, right after his shift, no time for lunch breaks which was good because Dustin didn't think he would be able to stomach anything because he was so nervous, but also bad because he was willing to do just about anything to stay away from the water for as long as possible (the evil-tub incident from a week ago still bounced around his head, laughing at him).

If he couldn't handle a bath tub, how was he supposed to handle the ocean?

The ocean, that big blue wet thing that stretched side-to-side for miles and back and forth as far as the eye could see and was deep and evil and after about ten feet going in you couldn't see the bottom anymore.

_That_ thing.

That evil thing that… how was he supposed to approach _that_?

Nerves had worked him over so badly that morning that he had only been able to get three quarters of his usual work load done (amazing really, considering how distracted he had been). It wasn't butterflies in his stomach, it was a nest of angry hornets that were trying to pull him inside out with there mean buzzing and stinging, and Dustin had dropped his wrench so many times that day he was afraid Kelly might begin to think he got an early onslaught of Alzheimer's or something.

Dustin had talked to Tori, eventually. She had come over Wednesday, even agreeing to talk under his pillow fort, but in return he had to tell her…he had to tell her what happened (he _thought_ he had done that at the party but she was a girl, so she demanded every single last detail, smells, sounds, sights, feelings (as though he had been paying attention to that stuff when he was sinking to his doom)).

So he told her. He told her about flying through the air and wondering if he could breathe underwater if he was morphed, how he had been relieved when he could, how he…how he couldn't move.

How he couldn't move and the light kept fading away.

How he couldn't move and he kept sinking into darkness.

How he had absolutely _no_ control over his body and he was all by himself.

Dustin hadn't said it, but he didn't want to be by himself. Not underwater, not above water, not _ever_, he didn't want to go back to his days before the Academy, he didn't want to-

But as he trailed off when he finished his story, Tori hugged him, and he could tell she knew the words he didn't say, she could tell how…how _bad_ it had been. She had calmed him, soothed him, cleaned up his face and pet his hair. She had given him every kind of gentle affection she could think of.

And then, when he was finally in a place of semi-happiness she burst the little bubble of tranquility she had built around him and told him that he was going to the ocean on Saturday.

Things hadn't gone down well after that, and unfortunately for Dustin Tori _knew_ how he would react before he did and had the foresight to make sure he was thoroughly cocooned in blankets before she made her "suggestion" (it was a command and they both knew it) so he wouldn't be able to escape her. She _knew_ he was hurt, she had said she was _sorry_ that it had happened, she _wished_ it had happened to her (he wouldn't though, because a water ninja afraid of water would have been beyond pathetic), but he needed to get over this.

"_When life knocks you down you can't just stay there."_

Dustin completely disagreed with that statement. As far as he was concerned you could stay as knocked down as you wanted if you'd like to, that was your business. _And_ he's a ground guy, he lived for the ground, he _loved_ the ground. If he had to stay buried in dirt for the rest of his life then so be it. But _no-_ Tori had to go and take "tough love" to a new level, badgering him (and comforting him when he looked to be too stressed out, though the sudden change only served to mix him up more on the inside) until he gave in, agreeing to meet her and Blake at the beach on Saturday.

That brought him back to now, staring at the clock, praying that the minutes would go by like years and the seconds would go by like centuries, even if he was only delaying the inevitable. Maybe, just _maybe_ time would become so _slow_ that he'd manage to overcome his kind've-phobia before they even got here, and all would be well.

Like _that's_ going to happen.

Time didn't bother slowing down for him, though he had managed to finally do something other then watch the clock. Dustin had just completed the finishing touches on the bike he was working on when a hand clasped against his shoulder. By the grip he could tell it was Blake (or not-Tori, so it _had_ to be Blake) and a quick look confirmed it. The navy ranger was closer to him, with Tori beside and slightly behind him, waving cheerfully with a happy smile on her face but her eyes said that she would stand for no funny business (attempts at delays or run away's) so Dustin washed up and clocked out quickly.

The ride to the beach wasn't bad, Dustin usually loved car rides, something about the moving scenery, the steady stream of air conditioning, and the soft buzzing of the radio always calmed him, or at least, it never bothered him, but the destination of this particular trip left him too troubled to enjoy it. In the front Tori and Blake made small talk, the normalcy was supposed to calm him or distract him or something. Hunter, Blake had said, was on his way to Ninja Ops right now, and Dustin wasn't sure what that was supposed to mean, though Blake _did_ give him a thumbs up to let him know that his secret was still safe when he leaned forward and voiced his concern (it surprised him, because even though he asked it to be a secret he had sincerely expected Blake to tell Hunter anyway, with them being brothers and all), and after that little heart attack Dustin pretty much zoned out, worrying about facing his nemesis.

The arrived at the beach too soon (time mocked him now) and they hit the bathrooms, changing quickly and dumping their regular clothes into their backpacks. They met behind the boys restroom (as two guys behind the ladies restroom was much worse than one lady behind the guys) to discuss the rest of the plan. Dustin was unaware of what was happening next, Tori had told him he was coming to the beach and he had come to the beach, everything beyond that was a complete mystery to him.

"There's a private cove that's not to far from here," Tori began, still smiling confidently, attempting to lighten his mood, "we're going to streak over there to… start working."

Working…working out his problems.

He supposed that was a good way to put it.

No one bothered to voice the _"But Sensei said no recreational streaking"_ (ninja streaking, he really hadn't said much about the other kind of streaking but he would probably look down on it on principal) because Dustin knew he sure as heck wouldn't be streaking at all if it was his choice, and the other two felt this was of vital importance (okay, so even deep down he knew it was to, but that didn't mean he had to like it).

They made it there without any incidents.

They set their stuff down and stretched without any incidents.

It was when they got to the part where they were actually supposed to begin _whatever_ they were here to do (he really hoped Blake wasn't going to sling him into the water again) when the whole "not having any incidents" thing came to and end.

The first thing that Dustin noticed when he found himself completely unoccupied was the smell (during the… "incident", his helmet had kept the water out, but had insisted on giving accurate reading on his surroundings, including smell), and the overpowering odor of salt attacked his nostrils, making him feel lightheaded. He rubbed a hand across his nose to try to make it less… poignant but now that the smell knew he didn't like it and it attacked with even greater intensity, going after his tongue so he even _tasted _the salt.

He had been distracted before, he hadn't been this close to the water when they got out of the van, had been too busy focusing on changing clothes or on what was going on to focus on-

Sounds, the water was moving, waving, lapping against the shore, eating up the earth (he wanted to hate it but couldn't) and the vastness, the great…big…there was so much-

He was backing up before he knew it, hands shoved against his nose and mouth to keep the smell away, keep it from-

He couldn't turn around, couldn't take his eyes off it, just kept backing up until suddenly there were a pair of arms around him…Blake, behind him, trying to hold him in place _(why would he do that?)_ and he would have elbowed him but that would have meant moving his hands-

Tori was in front of him, hands on either side of him, and her lips were moving but he couldn't hear her, he could only hear deep gasps and it took him a while to realize they were coming from himself.

She was still talking, concerned, her brows were all furrowed and some sound was starting to come through but it was muffled, like there was cotton in his ears, and he was shaking his head frantically but he didn't know why.

After several minutes (it could've been seconds, he'd never really know) of not moving Dustin felt his legs collapse under him, and suddenly he felt very weak. Blake and Tori dropped down with him, Blake coming up to his right side, while Tori took his left, still talking, but he didn't bother trying to understand her anymore.

He closed his eyes and pulled his legs to his chest, shoving his face hard against his knees while his hands pressed hard against his face. The gasping died down slowly, and he didn't cry though he felt the heat behind his eyes (a small blessing). Blake kept an arm around his shoulders and another against his bicep, steadying him, trying to keep him grounded while his mind threw him into the wind. Tori's voice had calmed down now, making soothing noises while she ran a hand through his hair slowly, delicately.

The thing he hated most was that he hadn't even touched the water

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Dustin wasn't sure how long he sat like that, huddled between Tori and Blake. All he knew was that he had to keep breathing (even if the air was terrible) and while underwater darkness was also terrible _this_ darkness, this self enforced coolness was a gift, a blessing. As the burning in his eyes lessened, he pressed his feet against the sand beneath him firmly, reveling in the comfort it provided, the connection it gave him. He supposed that could be one of the reasons he…he didn't like _that_ thing (he couldn't name it now), because when he had been…out there, he had no connection to his element whatsoever, he couldn't even sense where it was (though that might have been because of the whole thunder-lightning strike thing).

Right now all he wanted to do was bury himself in it, cocoon himself in earth and not come up for at least a couple weeks. He had done that before early on at the Wind Academy during training, when they where first taught earth diving. Every time he felt bad or anxious or lonely he would just tuck himself into the earth (not for several weeks though, it was more like several hours).

The earth didn't judge, had no opinions, it simply protected him, kept him company, and in a way, it loved him.

What he would give to go back to the simpler days. Then again, those days were before he was friends with Shane and Tori, so they weren't really all that great.

But he hadn't been afraid of-

"Dustin?" the voice was quiet, Tori's most likely, Blake wouldn't want to break the silence because he was probably feeling bad and…Dustin hadn't thought of that. Blake might be feeling awful because of this (Dustin would if he had done what he did, evil or no).

He didn't respond to her, but he did reach up and squeeze the outside of Blake's hand, trying to let him know it was okay, trying to let him know he didn't blame him.

The small action was enough to encourage the navy ranger to talk.

"Bro?" he asked, equally as quiet, as if he and Tori raising their voices past a certain volume would make Dustin fall apart all over again.

The brunette didn't trust his voice but he tried to give an answer anyway (they deserved that much), settling on a weak "…yeah?"

They must not have expected him to give an answer because their next response was delayed, he heard shifting movements above him and he could imagine them exchanging worried looks, mouthing questions to each other.

He wondered if this was romantic for them.

Not the…not the comforting a freaked out friend part but the…the uh…_bonding_ he guessed would be the right word, of…helping out. Like, working together on this side project brought them closer together or something. Kind've like two people building a birdhouse together or running a marathon.

It would be nice to help them out a little in return.

"What happen-" Blake started, but Tori must have given him a look that said that route was a no-go because he cut himself off and rephrased his question, "Are you…okay?"

There was a pause after the _"you"_ because the okay was relative. Relative to how he normally was when he was beside the…_that_ _thing,_ then yeah, he was just peachy.

"I'm awesome," he mumbled, loud enough for them to hear it but he didn't dare raise his head to look at them, fearing that the closeness-

He tried not to think about it.

There was another pause where they began to silently discuss their next course of action, but to save them the confusion and work he decided to explain himself as best he could.

"The smell," he offered, louder than before, "…it bothers me."

He gave them a moment to let that sink in before he added, softer, "…it's really big."

There, no more confusion, no more worry (he would say that but he knew they wouldn't stop doing that no matter how much he bugged them about it). But they _did_ relax a little, or their arms did, and Tori resumed patting his hair (he hadn't noticed she stopped) and he pressed his feet into the ground a little harder.

With enough distractions maybe his mind could escape from here.

"Do you want to go?" Tori asked after a brief pause, nudging her foot beside his, causing him to smile because only Blake would allow Dustin to play footsy with his girlfriend right in front of him.

"No," he replied, firmly, finally looking up (though he looked straight at Tori and not at the…ocean, in front of them), "We're here, I'm good now, and we're doing this."

"There's no rush," Blake consoled, and only now that he looked at the darker teen did he see that he hadn't noticed the footsy at all, so focused was he on _him._

Well doesn't that make a guy feel all special inside, getting priority over Tori.

Dustin would feel bad about that, except he didn't.

Ain't he a stinker?

"We're staying," he repeated as he finally built up the courage to look at the water again.

It was still big, it was still blue, and deep, and you still couldn't see beneath it but this time, this time it didn't seem as bad. This time, with his friends on either side of him, with the sand beneath them and with hands holding onto him, it wasn't as terrible as it was before, it was as imposing. This time he wasn't alone, and the smell wasn't as awful, after however long he was huddled he must having gotten used to it and maybe his constant avoidance of the beach threw him into shock after not smelling it for so long.

The bad part had been the not moving…and the being alone…and the not-being in connection with his element…and the water had seemed kind've like a prison, holding him down but right _now_ he could move, he wasn't alone, he _had_ his element, and the water didn't have a hold of him.

Just looking at it wasn't going to hurt him.

He smiled (shaky, but still genuine) and pushed himself to his feet, staring at his opponent head on. Like when he fell, Blake and Tori rose with him, smiles growing on their faces (also shaky but genuine), knowing that they were making some kind of progress today. Today he had freaked out; he couldn't deny that if he tried, he didn't want to anyway because he was all for owning his own actions and was completely against lying in any shape or form. Today he freaked out because of a smell and because of the view, but right now he was smelling that same smell, viewing that same view and he was okay.

He hadn't completely overcome his fear, but he had made a big step today.

And that thought was what took his shaky, tentative smile and transformed it into a full on beam, and soon he was high-fiving Blake and accepting hugs from Tori. To get her some loving he demanded a group hug, and Blake joined in, and here, beside his greatest nemesis, was where he felt the greatest he had in weeks.

It was a great moment.

But it was only that, a moment.

A second later his world came tumbling down again when a voice called out from behind them, sounding completely innocent and happy and unaware of the great trials that had taken place that day.

"Hey guys, Hunter said you guys were out here surfing, thought I'd come and join you!"

It had to be a dream, no, a nightmare, maybe nightmare was too harsh, so it was like a bad dream, or a hallucination…that's it, he had to be going crazy.

But Blake and Tori had reacted too, surprised by the new voice, and Dustin knew he wasn't hallucinating (though what he wouldn't give to have that happen right now) and he was back to feeling like he had been at Storm Chargers, nervous, gut turning inside out, and just a little light headed and jittery.

All because of one voice.

It was cheerful, it was enthusiastic, and Dustin would _normally_ be willing to do just about anything to hear it in _that_ specific tone, but today wasn't a normal day and he already knew from past experience that he was terrible at thinking on his feet, and if he earth dived right now there would _probably_ be a few questions that would lead to a full-on investigation, and if he streaked away he would probably be met with the same results and he really, _really_ wanted Lothor to attack _**right now**_**, **he didn't even care what kind of monster it was.

Dustin didn't want to turn around but Blake and Tori made him, because he had to act natural, because _they_ were acting natural (though on a good day he sucked at having a poker face so he wasn't sure how he was going to handle it today), luckily, their smiles were sincere enough to make up for his plastic, kindergarten-esk one.

Shane (unaware of how horribly he had just ruined the moment) trotted up to them happily, appropriately swim-suited up, but paused suddenly, looking around confused.

This was it, he knew something was up, they hadn't said anything but he knew, because he was Shane, and he probably had Cam and Hunter on speaker or something, and they were smart, and _they_ knew something was wrong, and he was going to ask questions and Dustin wasn't going to have answers and-

Maybe they'd be okay, maybe Dustin was just over-exaggerating (he had a tendency to do that). Maybe he would actually _wait_ for Shane to ask his question before he completely gave up. It couldn't be too bad right? He couldn't blow their whole cover by just asking one question could he?

Dustin should have known better then to test his luck.

Shane scanned the area around them, staring at their backpacks, "Where are your boards?"

_Your boards, you know, those things you use for surfboarding because that's what you guys said you were doing?_

It was official, the world hated him.

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Endnotes:

Bum, bum-bum-bum, Buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuum!

Cliffhanger! What shall happen next?

Shout out to Rogue Ranger and JDTB90 for your reviews, I'm running out of ways to express how happy they make me, but I will strive for more.

Answers: You actually asked this on my other story, but as for the characters ages I have them at 17 in this story, all of them, including Cam (I wanted to make him older but I didn't want to have any adult-minor issues when it actually got to the dating part) and 16 in the other story.

Have no fear, I'm not skipping the "morning after" with Shane and Cam, I'm gonna get to that next chapter.

...you know what; I think I need to abuse Shane. I've been going on and on abusing Dustin and Cam and so far Shane's just skated by with absolutely no problems.

_Hmmm_...I must fix this.

In other news (as I mentioned briefly above), I've started work on another story, Into the Woods, which is going to focus on how the Winds became friends and their beginning at the Academy. It's purely friendship though, no relationships so check it out if you want some heartwarming.

Until next time.


	27. As long as he needs me

Chapter 27

As Long As He Needs Me

I don't own Oliver, the musical

Takes place after the events of Chapter 24

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He didn't want to wake up.

Well, ever since Cam had become a ranger and had so much work and had begun to run himself ragged, in the few moments he _had_ managed to snag for sleeping purposes he hadn't wanted to wake up even though he knew he had to.

But it was different this time.

Something…was he rested?

As he began to stir into complete consciousness, shedding the haze of dormancy, he realized that as opposed to his usual battles with waking he actually felt…refreshed.

This fact did not bring him any comfort.

If he was rested then that meant he overslept, which meant he was behind on work and he wouldn't have everything he needed to get done completed before training tonight, and if his father even gave the smallest _hint_ that he needed to meditate today there was going to be a great deal of explaining to do to the rest of the team because Ninja Ops would be in shambles from the meltdown that would follow thereafter. Thoroughly awake (he had assumed, but was proven wrong a few seconds later) he craned his neck to see exactly how much time had wasted in his sloth. It took a moment for him to realize that he actually had to struggle to view his clock, and then it took another few seconds for him to realize _why_.

Cam was beginning to think that maybe subconsciously he _was_ a pimp, because he could offer no further explanation as to why he kept on ending up in bed with his friends.

He had thought last time had been bad, he had presumed that one specific occasion (followed by a series of other, specific, exclusive, never to happen again occasions (no matter how badly his libidinous subconscious wanted them to)) had been the worst that the fates could dish out at him.

_Oh_, how he had been wrong.

The set up this time was far worse than any he could have conceived, seemingly appearing straight out of a mild sex-induced nightmare. His opponent was Shane, the first strike, for unlike Dustin Shane was far more insightful and observant, and he would notice any out-of-character reactions and press to find answers for them. Strike two, Shane was awake, putting Cam at an immense disadvantage. The newly-deemed green ranger couldn't simply sneak out and pretend that the incident had never occurred (Shane might still be willing to do that now, but he probably wouldn't be as willing to let him leave). The third, and by far the worse strike, was their positioning. Unlike last time where Cam was the _cuddle-ee_, this time he was the _cuddler_, and Dustin's cuddling looked amateurish and childlike in comparison to his.

Because when he did something (subconsciously or not) he did something _all the way._

He was not merely draped across Shane like Dustin had been, _no_, he was completely on top of the guy, chest to chest, leaving no room for imagination. There legs were tangled, his hands had been firmly attached to Shane's hoody (he didn't bother thinking about why the other was wearing a sweater in bed because he had other things to worry about) and his head had been in Shane's neck (explaining why he had to struggle to see his clock) and if he remembered correctly his lips had been-

No, now was not the time to think of that, though if they had been where they had been and Shane wasn't freaking out and-

The red ranger even seemed to be encouraging it, now that some of the panic had died down Cam realized it, his arms where secured around the tech's waist, and if he was hearing correctly was he…snickering?

He searched his memory to see if any of his actions (both of theirs) up to this point supported any of what was actually happening here. What exactly happened yesterday? Did he say something in his exhaustion that made…?

A worse thought came to him, what if he hit on Shane?

Wait…if he had, obviously he had been successful, otherwise they wouldn't be here, and Shane wouldn't be tolerating it…and-

"You awake?"

The voice was quiet, and it was a stupid question because Cam knew _Shane_ knew he was awake, but he wondered if it might have been posed as an opportunity to give him an out, to let him go back to sleep.

Taking a steady breath, Cam forced himself to push away all his tension, demanding his body relax and…take the moment to enjoy what fate has given him.

It wasn't like he got to snuggle often.

When Shane figured out that he wasn't going to deem him with a response he decided to move his conversation on with a statement, "I didn't take you for a cuddler."

Still quiet and relaxed with just the vaguest hints of amusement the voice called out again, except this time Cam decided that for his pride's sake he had to let go of his appreciation and attempted to push himself off of Shane. He frowned when the arms refuse to let him go.

Before he could demand that they do so Shane cut to the chase, "Did you get enough sleep?"

His voice fought to stay the same but Cam still detected undertones of concern, causing his frown to deepen and his desire to know the events of last night to grow.

"I'm fine," his mouth responded before his brain could formulate a proper plan for attaining this knowledge.

Shane shed some light on the situation anyway, "you weren't earlier."

_What happened earlier?_

What had he done?

The last thing he remembered was working on his new A.I. project at his computer, and then nothing, so what could he have possibly done?

"How long has it been this bad?" Shane asked, and while he doesn't let Cam off (for the life of him he doesn't know why, it's not like he's not used to being alone) he _does_ sit up some, shifting so that Cam's in his lap and the tech's not sure if this is much better as far as his pride's concerned (though it was a much better position as far as his hormones were). The unanswered questions ringing in his mind were frustrating, but the alternative was to fully comprehend he was sitting on Shane's lap and deal with the feelings that came with that (the foreign intimacy of it all), and that was going to do nothing to ease his mind so he settled for focusing on option number one.

How long had _what_ been this bad? He doesn't even know what happened!

Did he mean the workload? How would Shane even know about that?

And how does that make him be in bed with him?

What did they do?

He couldn't ask these questions without giving too much away, so instead he snaps, "What are you talking about?"

Cam couldn't see Shane but he Could tell by the way the red ranger tightened his grip around him (_stop being so pleased with that)_ that he's frowning, "The overworking, the lack of sleep, the…" he paused, like he didn't mean to start stating the third problem and Cam could feel his heart stop, because if Shane came in on him completely out of it from fatigue he _might_ have said something he hadn't wanted to say, but then why should he panic because he's still here right and-

"…the loneliness," Shane finished, anticlimactically, and Cam's heart began beating again and his lungs remembered how to breath.

He was going to go ahead and assume by the fact Shane hadn't started hitting on him (two months ago he wouldn't have been able to pick up on the signs of flirtation, but thanks to Hunter he was now properly educated) that by "loneliness" the red ranger meant "lack of affection", which kind of made everything click into place a little (and slightly relieved him because he did _not_ admit to his leader that he was gay on accident) but then Cam realized that no, no they didn't.

In his mind he attempted to peace the story together. He stayed up late working on his project and fell asleep at his computer. Shane showed up in the morning, saw his predicament and decided to put him to bed (probably catching sight of the caffeine pills).

Yes, those two things made sense. Those two facts account for the workload and the lack of sleep.

Now how did Shane come up with the "loneliness"?

With all Cam's memories accounted for, he had to ask Shane for the answer, "Did I…say something last night?"

Luckily, this seemed to be the right reaction because Shane didn't seem at all surprised by his confusion (which meant he _did _do some sleep talking), "You asked me to stay," he explained.

Except he didn't, because staying because you were asked to and _allowing_ yourself to be claimed as somebody's human teddy bear and _encouraging_ it were two completely different things, resulting from two completely different actions.

It wasn't a lie, Cam supposed he _could_ have asked for Shane to stay, but that wasn't the whole story, and he _wanted_ the whole story.

As Dustin would say, it was time to put his "game face" on.

"What else happened?" he growled out, tone warning. He didn't have patience for this; it was too early in the morning. He glanced at the clock to back up his frustration only to find it was 3:46.

3:46

…_pm_

That was _not_ a pleasant bombshell.

Suddenly getting the answers to his questions seemed far less important when the time finally dawned on him. So what if Shane knew he craved some physical attention (knowing his luck it was communicated in an embarrassing, overemotional kind of way), the fact of the matter was that he knew, he felt the need to do something about it (later Cam would decide this was _not_ a good thing) and now it was _very_ late in the afternoon and Cam had work to do.

He had intended to break out of Shane's hold while the other was focused on answering his question and run for his lab, locking himself inside. Unfortunately Shane was still one step ahead of him, having noticed his sudden tension, and was suitably prepared for his escape attempt. He tightened his arms around Cams waist, preventing him from getting up, leaving Cam with the option of A) executing a full body flail until the red ranger lost his grip, B) elbowing the red ranger in the face, or C) use what little leverage he has and flip them both onto the floor, hoping the resulting impact would free him or that the initial push would set him free.

While option B might feel like a great tension reliever at this moment, in hindsight it might be a slight overreaction, so it was out.

Option A _could_ meet his desired results, but he couldn't help but be reminded of a child throwing a temper tantrum, and he had already lost too much pride today with excessive cuddling so that one was out.

That left option C, and he executed it as quickly and efficiently as he could post-wake up. Surprisingly, Shane _hadn't_ been prepared for that one and lost a majority of his grip. He adapted quickly though, following Cam off of the bed and grabbing a hold of his back just as he thought that freedom was his. There was a rush of motion, reactive mostly, too quick to be properly thought out, and suddenly Cam was on his back, Shane looming over him. A hand pressed against his shoulder, intended to keep him down, but Cam flipped them posing so that _he_ was on top but they both knew the hold wouldn't last.

When it came to hand-to-hand combat Cam could probably wipe the floor with Shane any day, but when it came to a test of strength the green ranger had to admit defeat to his dark-skinned friend.

He needed a plan.

_Or_ a distraction.

"I have work to do," he spat out absentmindedly, not really focusing so much on the words as he was focusing on his next move.

He wanted to knock Shane out but couldn't, that would be an overreaction, but he wasn't fast enough to just get off him and get to the door, even if he tried streaking Shane would probably have a hold on his ankle before he got away.

Why was he so bad at wrestling?

Great, that was just another thing he needed to add to his to-do list.

Shane flipped them again instead of replying, and this time he decided that he was done playing around and started to take advantage of his position. Cam swiped wildly at his head with his right arm to distract him, but this turned out to be a terrible decision because it gave Shane the opening he needs. The red ranger grabbed his arm before Cam could finish the swing and pulled it along his left side while pushing himself forward, sliding his right arm around Cam's neck. He swung his legs over Cam so that he was sitting down on Cam's right side and completed the hold by grabbing onto the arm around Cam's neck and leaning back, pushing his legs forward.

It was a basic hold, it was an easy hold, Cam _should_ have seen it coming from miles away and ducked (or rolled) out of it, but now his right arm was trapped across Shane's chest, against his side, and his left arm (while free) could do nothing but claw angrily at Shane's sweatshirt.

He was almost glad he couldn't see him because he _knew_ that there was a smug look on his face.

"This," Shane said, pausing to catch his breath, "is kind've what I'm talking about." And then he paused, because the last thing they were talking about was the affection thing, so he clarified, "the working yourself to the ground thing."

_Ah, like I couldn't tell._

"I don't have time for this," Cam spat out, grabbing bitterly at Shane's shoulder. His friend responded by pressing more weight against his chest, causing him to give a gruff exhale.

"You don't have time for sleep?" Shane asked, attempting to sound friendly but Cam could hear his exasperation.

He didn't allow himself to care about the other's concern; he couldn't distract himself with that now.

"I'm working on that," he growled, kicking his legs out uselessly (he _would_ get Shane back for this, mark his words).

"What, are you going to make more time?"

This time his voice is full of entertainment, an attempt to make Cam see how foolish he was being.

But he wasn't.

"Not quite," he murmured, grabbing at Shane's shoulder again (he could deal with a little weight).

Shane sighed, "Cam, we can help-"

"No you can't!" Cam snapped before he even realized it, and then the floodgates were open and all the _garbage_ that he'd been building up came spilling out of his mouth with absolutely no filter. "I know you mean well," he began, aggravated, "and you want to help, but the bottom line is that _I'm_ the only one who can handle things around here, and you should know that _I _don't like the fact that I have to run myself ragged anymore than you do and if you would just _trust_ me you would I'm trying to fix that, and why are you so okay with cuddling me?"

He didn't mean for the last one to come out but when the floodgates open, they open, and all the water must come out. Instead of disgust or hurt he is met by a small laugh; and Shane, curse him, was still as calm as he was when Cam first woke up.

The apology that followed was also unexpected.

"I'm sorry," Shane replied after he had given Cam enough time to calm down moderately, "if you've got it covered, you've got it covered, but you should know we're still going to worry."

"Duly noted," Cam muttered, slightly off center, and still annoyed that Shane hadn't answered his question.

"Now," he continued, because they were slightly seeing eye to eye, "the cuddling."

_Explain it, if you will_.

Shane picked up on his hint and began to explain, letting Cam out of his hold as he did so. "Last night you asked me to stay," he said again, and Cam fought off the urge to throw a shoe at him.

"You already said that," he didn't quite snap, and he could hear Shane make a placating gesture (or what he assumed to be one). He didn't think he could handle actually seeing Shane (or being seen by Shane) at the moment, so Cam didn't bother himself with turning the lights on.

"Sorry it's…just a little hard to explain," Shane replied, and Cam's about to retort "_then try to"_ but Shane seemed to sense his aggravation so he continued, "You need it."

…

…

…

_What?_

"I _need_ it?" Cam echoed, incredulously, wondering still how Shane had come to this conclusion, but the other didn't seem to want to give him any ground on that matter.

"Just trust me," Shane urged, placing a hand against his shoulder, "everyone needs a hug now and then."

It's an opening (whether Shane knew it or not), a perfect opportunity to move on, and while Cam's brain processed this his mouth did not, and decided to point out, "That wasn't a hug."

Again, Shane's response was unexpected, genuinely laughing (as opposed to an awkward, forced chuckle). "_That,_" he began, referring to their sleeping positions, "was years of backlog you were catching up on."

Cam almost couldn't believe it.

_This, _wherever this was, _had_ to be an alternate reality, it _had_ to be the twilight zone, or an alternate dimension he had accidentally stepped into because there was no way they could sleep as comfortable as lovers (he didn't bother hiding it because that's how they'd been posed) and have Shane come off thinking he was simply doing his duties as a friend and teammate.

How thick was this guy? How oblivious to homosexuality was he?

It didn't matter _how_ strong your friendship was with someone, unless you were Dustin (who was a unique phenomenon) you _did not_ engage in such…intimate physical interaction willingly.

What was going on in Shane's head?

How could he possibly be so okay with this?

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The sharp pause that followed after his declaration didn't really surprise Shane all that much. To be honest, after that show yesterday (or, earlier this morning) nothing Cam threw at him could surprise him anymore. He had thought this was going to be a difficult conversation, with Cam as guarded as he was about emotional matters (the guy built up defensive walls that would make Sing-Sing jealous), but Shane knew that if he just kept to his guns he would probably make it through.

A lot of it though, depended on Cam.

He was (as Shane expected him to be) embarrassed by his need for physical interaction. Dustin had been that way too, for a while, back when they had first met, but now he was comfortable enough, and trusted them enough, to seek out what he needed from his friends. As welcoming as they were to Cam though, Shane seriously doubted the tech would take the same initiative no matter _how_ much they assured him they were okay with it.

After hours of pondering (he could only nap for so long and he had needed something to pass the time) Shane had decided that he was going to take that initiative upon himself.

Cam wanted it but couldn't ask for it (because of pride, fear, stress, whatever), so Shane would simply take that decision out of his hands and just give it to him. That way Cam wouldn't have to awkwardly put himself out there and all Shane had to do was treat him like Dustin… a little, he was still trying to find the perfect balance for it all. It had been…he was going to be honest; it had been really weird at first, after he had settled Cam down and they got…situated. He had never…never really been that close to anyone before (not physically), not even a girl and especially not a guy, but after a while the…oddness of it all kind of just faded away.

He decided, after much deliberation, it was because it wasn't just some random guy; it was because it was Cam. It was Cam, his friend, who just…needed someone.

Shane, Tori, Dustin, even Blake and Hunter, they all had family they could turn to, to give them love and affection, to reassure them and let them know everything was going to be okay (even if they didn't know the half of it), but Cam, all he had was his dad and while it was clear that the guy really loved him, he couldn't give him…

Well, he couldn't give him _this._

This here, this was major withdrawal (or that's what Shane has labeled it as). Cam had been isolated up at Ninja Ops working his butt off, forced into seclusion, and really, just like everyone else-

Cam needed somebody to love.

And of course, he needed to be loved in return, and _that_, that is something Shane can handle. He was stubborn enough to wait out or work through Cam's walls, and had enough of the tech's respect to have him _listen_ to him or, at least, allow him in. From this day on, whether Cam liked it or not, Shane was going to have his back. Make sure he ate a decent amount, slept at appropriate times, bathed, and most importantly, give him a hug when he most needed it.

He would come back, like he promised, because if Shane was anything, he was a man of his word.

"You're crazy," Cam finally declared, feigning annoyance to cover up embarrassment, and instead of addressing their topic of conversation any further he stood up and flipped on the lights, momentarily blinding both of them.

When his vision returned Cam was across the room again with his glasses on (snagged off the bedside table) and was rummaging through one of his dressers for clothes.

Shane had to try awfully hard not to look too terribly pleased with himself. Cam was already off to a better start.

As though sensing his thoughts the tech glared at him over his shoulder and slammed the drawer shut, before making his way to the bathroom. He paused just before the entrance, turning with his hand on the doorknob, "If you knock and I don't answer, I am meditating," he paused, for what Shane assumed was dramatic affect, "Do _not come in._"

Shane gave him a cheerful thumbs up in response, to which Cam rolled his eyes, and soon the red ranger was alone in the bedroom, listening to the powerful blast of water.

He mentally reviewed his list.

Sleeping?

Done for the day.

Affection?

Also done for the day (he didn't want to overload the guy, he sounded a little freaked out as it was).

Bathing?

In progress.

That left food, and while Shane might not be the best chef, he knew he could whip out a mean sandwich.

With a smile he got off the floor, quickly making his way to the kitchen. If he had the food done by the time Cam got out there was no way he could say no.

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Cam had the water running but hadn't stepped under it, hadn't even bothered taking off his sleep-rumpled clothes, he was too busy processing what had just happened.

The clothing he had collected from his drawers haphazardly decorated his counter in a disorderly fashion from when he had tossed it there, and now he stood frozen in great vexation, wondering if the entire world had gone mad the moment he discovered his sexuality, or if it simply came with the territory. In hindsight he realized, in his wonderment he had embedded himself too deep in the subtleties of their conversation (something Shane had no perception of) and therefore he elected to discard his current path of discourse and move on, giving a more relaxed, sarcastic, Cam-like response.

In the end that seemed to be the right choice, as Shane said nothing more of it, and the only way Cam could see fit to get any privacy to just _think_ was to take a shower. If he was lucky (it didn't seem to be his day, but it had the possibility of turning around) Shane would leave Ninja Ops all-together.

Shane.

Shane.

…god-_eh_, Shane!

He wasn't supposed to become another problem! He was _supposed _to help, he was _supposed_ to take care of everyone else and now he was all, taking care of _him_ and ignoring all the implications of it, what it could be-

Cam was actually beginning to look forward to seeing Hunter, because at least in that relationship he knew his feelings weren't sincere and-

…curse his stupid, stupid mind.

He didn't mean that, yes…no, yes, he did, but not-

In the background the shower pattered on, steadily wasting water.

He was faking around Hunter yes, but that didn't automatically imply-

Why did he have to think? Thinking was overrated, thinking obviously lead to problems, problems he didn't have the time to deal with and-

_Why won't it just **stop**?_

Why do…why did this have to happen _now?_ Why did it have to happen _ever?_ Why couldn't his body hurry up and mature so his brain could get out of the mindset of a teenage girl?

_That's it, no more thinking about that for today. For the rest of the day, I'm going to focus on…Cyber Cam, that's it, that's what I'll call him. Cyber Cam. And I shall focus on nothing but him._

The hot water wouldn't last forever (in Ninja Ops that was merely an expression because he _had_ determined a way to keep the hot water in constant supply) so Cam began to strip down, dreaming of coding and circuits.

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Shane was in the middle of weighing the benefits of mayo vs mustard (he was deciding all his ingredients first, then constructing the sandwich) when he caught the sound of footsteps coming from down the hall. They came from the direction of the entrance, heavy (making it one of the guys) and a moment later Hunter popped his head into the room, investigating the turned-on light.

Confusion followed when he caught sight of Shane, and he stepped completely into the kitchen, arms laden with plastic bags filled with what smelled like really good barbeque.

It was…unexpected, but a pleasant surprise, and in a way, a fill in for that report he had never gotten from Cam. Here Hunter was, delivering himself to the green ranger, bearing gifts of food (sparing Shane the difficulties of figuring out the kind of sandwich Cam would want), actually seeking out his company.

It couldn't be anymore perfect if Shane had tried.

"Looking for Cam?" he asked nonchalantly, forcing his pleasure to stay out of his voice.

Hunter didn't answer right away, instead motioning towards the sandwich stuff and raising an eyebrow.

"I was going to make lunch, but I see you got that covered," he explained before he began to put the stuff away. He needed to give them some alone time, to ensure Hunter wasn't staying he added, "Do you know where the others are?"

The crimson ranger visibly relaxed (the guy must be letting himself go because normally Shane never picked up on that kind of thing) and tilted his head thoughtfully. "Surfing lessons, out in the cove," he paused a moment to set his bags down on the counter before he added, "you should join them."

Necessity to leave aside, that actually sounded like a good idea, but Shane knew that he wouldn't normally give in so easily so he had to put up at least _some_ of a fight, "and miss the barbeque?"

The blond actually smiled at that, shaking his head in mock sadness. "Sorry man, only brought enough for two."

Shane narrowed his eyes slightly, but kept the smile on his face. "Maybe next time."

"Whatever," Hunter murmured, happy that he'd won but a little sick of the delays. "Where's Cam?"

"Shower, told me not to bother him," the response was casual, again, but he tried to give Hunter the hidden implication of "_didn't say anything about you"_ without really giving him that implication because that was also something he wouldn't normally do.

It was a lot harder than he thought it would be.

"The cove right?" he asked, switching gears because leaving seemed to be the only remaining option for him.

"Right," Hunter replied, and they exchanged their goodbyes, casual, again, and parted, Shane making his way out of Ninja Ops.

He called Cam on his way out to give him a heads up, then made his way back to his house.

After all, you needed a swimsuit if you were going to go swimming.

* * *

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Endnotes:

Morning after, stuff goes down, definitely didn't go where I thought it would.

Standing ovation for Rogue Ranger (and you _should_ watch Into the Woods because it is _awesome_) for his review, you always manage to point out the little details, and it really helps me out in the long run.

Big note, I had to go back and change the time in chapter 24, I made it too late. There's no way Cam's going to be out of his mind fatigued at 1:47 and then bright and sunny at by 3:46. Sorry, my bad. I switched it to 10:47 (we may assume that Shane went to Ninja Ops _really_ early in the morning).

To clarify, at the moment Shane's love is purely fraternal. Just making sure we don't get too confused here.

Soo- yeah, we finally got back to that chapter, and I think I like how it turned out. It was different then I originally planned (didn't expect more Cam angst), but in the end I think it turned out well.

Until next time.


	28. How Long Must This Go On?

Chapter 28

How Long Must This Go On?

It don't own Beauty and the Beast, the musical

Takes place after the events of Chapter 27

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It was an advantageous phenomena that Cam was as attached to electronics as he was, because if he hadn't been not only would his required duties be a lot less pleasurable to partake in (being that they only resembled a fraction of the work he actually carried out because of how fascinating the material was), if he had been without these obligations it was very probable that he would have slaughtered his entire team by now so he could finally be rid of their perpetual stream of positive babble.

The fault wasn't entirely theirs, were they to blame for having wonderful, enjoyable, carefree (with the exception of the obvious) lives? Were they to blame for wanting to share their joy and happiness with those who were supposed to care?

Was it their fault that by comparison his life was in wrecked shambles?

_That's_ why, regardless of their actions, it was very convenient for Cam to be as attached to his job as he was. If he focused wholeheartedly on his work he could prevent himself from snapping at the only people who legitimately cared about him, and in return, he assisted all of them, as the others so eloquently put it, in "smacking Lothor down."

He couldn't help but marvel (vaguely, because the night wasn't getting any younger and he had stuff to do) that despite the fact he had slept a majority of the day away, and for once in his week and a half, going on two, jaunt as green ranger/lab technician he was actually _rested_, he still managed to wind up with his biggest headache up to date. His beginnings with Shane _should_ have been the worst of it, but of course Hunter was not to be outdone (ultimately, Cam discerned that he was, but he sure did try to give Shane a run for his money) and thrust his presence on Cam (who had more than enough trouble to deal with for that day) and Shane, for once in his stupid existence actually stuck to their agreed plan and left him to the wolves. Fortunately that was brought to an end when the team met up for training, and the less important socializing, though why this was necessary was beyond Cam because it wasn't like Tori, Dustin, Blake, and Shane _hadn't_ spent the majority of the day together.

It was during this brief period before they got to sparring where Cam had to participate in a major exercise of control because after listening to about five minutes of them go on and on and _on_ about the stupid beach and watching Hunter smirk and Shane try to send whispered messages of his approval/support/whatever-crazy-unimportant-feeling-he-decided-to-spring-on-green-ranger's, Cam was just about ready to knock them all unconscious and call it a day.

Strangely enough the only one who even _slightly_ noticed his sour disposition was Dustin, and Cam couldn't help but feel that there was the barest chance he might have scared the yellow ranger off on accident which was…frustrating to say the least.

A part of his troubles were inflicted out of his concern for his friend, to shoo him off, however accidentally, was unacceptable.

And _then_ the curly-haired teen began to babble some other story about the beach and Cam forced his mind into a place of cool isolation, mentally reviewing the parameters of his newest computer program.

It was a blessing when they left (eventually, when they _did_ all leave, he had to practically throw Hunter out) and he retired back to his lab. He didn't even bother removing his training tunic (clothes were clothes, as long as you covered your vital spots and had a measure of comfort everything else was irrelevant), he merely plumped himself down in front of his monitor and continued were he had left off the previous evening (morning, period of work, whenever). It was better than any meditation his father could offer him, more suitable to his needs. Here he was being active, working, contributing, excelling at what he was most efficient in. Here he could block out his real world dilemmas and submerge himself in a world symbols and numbers, gradually building up to his finished product.

The fundamentals, the building blocks to Cyber Cam were the most vital, requiring such attention to detail that he was unable to be concerned with anything else, and for a while, for a brief period of time he was completely without troubles.

He had been in the middle of uploading all the data he had gathered on the zords and power disks to date when a hand pulled at his shoulder and twisted his chair around; breaking the routine he had built for himself.

The fact that it was Shane that had interrupted his work wasn't altogether too surprising, nor was the look of disapproval (with mixed accents of concern) that accompanied it. It had been a futile hope that Shane would stay away for the rest of the weekend, but luckily Cam hadn't indulged himself in that thought too much, allowing himself to feel apathetic by what was undoubtedly the leader's inevitable return.

"I'm busy," he began, once more settling into the ever familiar song and dance that had settled over them for what felt like was much longer than just one day.

Shane's frown deepened (another sight Cam was sure he was going to become accustomed to) and his eyes flicked about his work area briefly before setting back on him. His hands weren't tense, Cam would even go as far to say they were relaxed, one pressing lightly against the tech's shoulder while the other rested against the side of his armrest, his fingers brushing against the edge of Cam's sleeve.

He wanted to reach down and touch them, but thought better of it.

"Do you know what time it is?" the red ranger asked, friendly, maybe even joking, though Cam was in the dark about what could possibly be the source of his entertainment. He supposed this was an attempt at a wake up call, that whatever time it actually was would be considered "late" by the weak of will.

Or early, depending on your attention to detail.

Ultimately it was unimportant, and Cam informed Shane of such.

"Doesn't matter," he murmured, willing the numb feeling of reclusion to stay as he stared Shane down, "I'm rested, go away."

His words were quiet warnings, and to support his declaration he grappled smoothly at the hand against his shoulder, preparing to dislodge it. Shane increased his pressure in response, pushing Cam's chair back against his desk.

The smile was still on, but Shane was all about business. "I'd like to keep you that way," he replied, aggravatingly _nice_, and it was all Cam could do to not revisit the techniques they had practiced during training.

In all honesty he wasn't entirely sure _why_ he was fighting this, on principle, perhaps, because he knew Shane wasn't going to leave until he fulfilled whatever obligations he had thrust upon himself, but Cam couldn't just allow himself to give in.

Even if he knew it would save him more time in the long run.

"I'm fine," he insisted again, fingers curling around the darker-teen's hand to throw it off, but the other switched to a dirtier, incredibly unfair tactic and flipped his hand over, sliding their palms together and clasping his hand lightly before shifting again, entwining their fingers together in a sickeningly casual manner, trapping Cam in place more effectively than any amount of pressure against his shoulder could.

The mongrel was learning, adapting his plans to incorporate the most effective ways of Cam-handling. If he thought Shane were capable of such cruelties he would assume he was doing it all on purpose.

"It's midnight," Shane supplied, smirk adorning his face, knowing full well that a majority of Cam's attention was on their hands even though he wouldn't look at them. The tech processed the squeeze that followed this statement before he fully processed the actually statement.

Day trips were acceptable, though night training was pushing it when it came to parental concerns. Coming out this late was absolutely prohibited; Shane needed to go home, weekend or no.

Cam began to express _his_ disapproval, "You shouldn't-"

But Shane cut him off, aware of seemingly _all_ his objections, "Sneaking in's just as easy as sneaking out. I'll be back before my parents even realize I'm gone."

True as that may be-

"It's risky-" Cam began _again_, but once more Shane interrupted, changing his plan of attack.

"Okay," the red ranger agreed, smiling lightly at Cam's return glare before changing the subject, "Have you eaten?"

It didn't throw Cam nearly as much as the hand holding did, so he adapted quickly, answering before attempting to very slowly, very subtly disentangling their fingers. He would have brought up his other arm to assist in matters but he had the slightest fear that would bring Shane's other hand into the mix and he knew he wouldn't be able to handle that level of stupidity without severely compromising himself.

"Earlier," he grunted, attempting to distract the red ranger from their hands with a nudge to his opposite foot, but the taller teen remained unimpressed, keeping his eyes focused solely on Cam. The fingers remained stubbornly locked around his, though precautions were made to make sure the grip wasn't painful.

Cam decided to remain unaffected by this.

"Recently?" Shane asked, probably knowing the last time Cam had gotten anything to eat had been during his forced visit with Hunter, almost eight hours ago. Cam wouldn't put it past the red ranger to know that he had only just pecked at his food then too, nervous energy having preoccupied too much of his stomach for him to be able to eat anything.

Cam continued his resistance anyway, pulling petulantly at his fingers, "I'm not hungry."

He didn't have time to be.

"Humor me," Shane retorted, and the amusement that permeated his voice struck a sore spot in Cam, whittling away at his already frayed control and this time he _did_ react, rising from his chair before he even fully processed the action, glaring daggers at the nuisance that stood before him. As though he hadn't dealt with enough of him today, as though he hadn't sacrificed _enough_ for him, for _all_ of them-

The red he saw had nothing to do with the ranger's color affiliation, "I've already-"

The rest of his words died away as Shane rearranged their position, impassive to Cam's flare of anger (had been expecting it, undoubtedly, theoretically had been baiting him into it). He shifted closer, as though it were possible, and slid his free arm around the agitated tech's waist, pulling him into an undesired hug, tilting his head slightly so it touched the side of Cam's face.

He wanted to punch him, knee him, kick him, anything, or, he _told_ himself he desired these things despite the fact both he and Shane were well aware of how badly he wanted this.

Well, maybe not _how_ badly he wanted it, but they both knew he wanted it.

It wasn't fair.

Slowly, Cam released a shaky breath, tension lessening in his body. After a few moments (Shane still keeping his silence) Cam allowed himself to relax into the hold, resting his head against Shane's shoulder. The return hand squeeze was both unintentional and unnoticed on his part, and thankfully Shane didn't bother to pay it any attention.

It was…nice, just standing, unproductive, inefficient, and his mind _screamed_ at him to stop giving into emotional needs and get back to work, but it was still nice.

_Finally,_ Shane released his grip on his hand, but only so he could complete his hold around Cam's waist, effectively capturing him against his chest, and for once that evening the green ranger opted not to complain, simply accommodated the change and leaned into it, though he kept his arms curled against the top of Shane's chest. He couldn't handle fully retuning the gesture in his current state, not after everything that had happened.

The other didn't comment on his lack of cooperation, and in the few brief moments before he had designated for Cam calming down, all was well.

Shane lifted a hand off Cam's back and ran it up the base of his neck, massaging the back of the tech's head in what was supposed to be a soothing motion that was nothing short of torture.

"You can keep working," he offered quietly, though the meaning was not misinterpreted by Cam, the other was merely suggesting (or allowing) he be productive while the food he insisted against was made. The downside to this was that Cam would be forced to leave the comfort his body never should have grown accustomed to in the first place, a fact that also worried him because being this unproductive should _not_ be more desirable than his work.

"…fine," he mumbled in return, delaying his response for as long as it was reasonable and the arms released him, stepping away gradually and he immediately settled back into his chair, rotating to face the screen before Shane could pick up any hints of disappointment.

To his displeasure Cam did not immediately hear retreating footsteps, and he could feel the warm gaze that barreled into the back of his skull, unwavering. The footsteps, when he did hear them (after he demanded his body resume his work) were advancing, stopping short beside him and he glared at his screen, typing away with renewed vigor. Gradually a paper pad slid into view, nudging up against his right arm insistently, brown arm that pushed it there mocking him.

"What?" he snapped softly, scowling at the innocent pad for existing.

Shane let out an involuntary sigh (Cam knew he was being difficult but his desires were reasonable, the one Shane was aware of, so he refused to be feel guilty about his attitude) and presented him a pen (green, the irony, and not even of one Cam's).

"Write down what you want."

Cam spread his distaste for the pad to the pen, shifting his frustrations onto inanimate objects all the while attempting to remind Shane of his earlier protests, "I don't want-"

Shane cut him off with a lazy sweep of the pen, bringing it full circle and tilting the end in Cam's direction, "You would waste a lot less time if you just-"

Unable to handle any further lectures Cam interrupted him, grabbing the green writing utensil out of his hand. "Give me that," he urged, clicking it operational before jotting down a few notes on the notepad (he didn't have any preferences so it was more for Shane's benefit than his),."Here," he grumbled when he was finished, offering both tools back to their owner, "happy?"

His negativity rolled off Shane like water, if it even managed to reach him at all, his mood was so sickeningly positive and cheerful. The red ranger smiled again, reaching out and ruffling Cam's hair one last time before turning to leave, calling over his shoulder, "Incredibly."

The footsteps were long gone before Cam was able to give his reply, because as fake and insincere as it was in his mind, out loud it was destined to be a joke.

"Don't get used to it," he whispered to himself, an empty threat, knowing he enjoyed the attention, wanted the companionship, and hating himself every step of the way because of it.

Loathing the desires that bubbled up on an innocent gesture of friendship.

Working did little to distract him afterwards, and with his thoughts as muddled as they were it would have been wise to quit the project altogether, saving it for another day, but this was Cam, and stopping wasn't an option.

Which in hindsight would prove to be a disastrous turn of events.

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_Somehow, _Dustin thought as he watched the water drops spill out of the shower head and collide with floor of the tub, _Someway, I managed to survive today._

He knew he had to get under the water, training led to being dirty, and staying dirty led to having unhappy friends so he _had_ to get clean (and refreshed and whatever else a shower did), and he would, eventually, but he had just been around so much water today he was a little sick of it, so he decided to give himself a two minute time out before he entered the fray again.

He wasn't…regressing? That was the word, he wasn't going backwards, he wasn't afraid of his shower, or even his bathtub anymore, but…come on, he made _huge_ steps today, even after Shane showed up (especially after Shane showed up).

Dustin paused mid-shoe removal; mentally flashing back to what he thought was going to be the worst afternoon of his life.

Somehow it wasn't, which was a really nice turn of events for him.

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_Dustin was shaken by the question but Tori responded immediately, acting normal, as though she had **not** just been caught red-handed in a lie and Dustin would have hated her for how easy she made it look if he wasn't so busy being dog-gone grateful._

"_Woah, woah, wo-ah!" She exclaimed, enthusiastically but not too over-dramatically, selling it just right, "You're getting a little ahead of yourself," she explained, smiling cheerfully, "after last weeks lesson," she gave Blake a pointed look, and the navy ranger got into the act, running a hand bashfully through his hair like he was trying to play it off, causing Shane to snicker, "I decided we needed to take baby steps. Today we start with meditation."_

_For one heart pounding second a skeptical look crossed the red ranger's face, so Dustin tried to play along too, cupping a hand around his mouth on Blake's side and stage whispering, "He's **really** bad," and tilting his head in the shorter Thunder brother's direction while giving a very painful-to-watch wink._

_He almost thought he blew it (it had sounded a lot better in his head than it had out loud) but Shane laughed, throwing his head back and Tori joined him softly, pressing a hand against Dustin's arm so he could join them._ _He's very proud to say his fake laugh actually sounded sincere and not nearly as forced as it felt._

_Blake grumbled something under his breath and glared at all three of them, rolling his eyes when his response inspired more laughing._

_When it all died down Dustin actually felt a little better, somewhere between the beginning and the end of it the fake laughter had become real laughter and some of the nervous tension he had been wearing about his shoulders eased away, leaving him feeling light._

_Maybe he could do this._

"_Well," Shane said, smile just as bright as when he got there and eyes still unknowing, "permission to join you?" he asked, bowing slightly in Tori's direction._

_The aqua ranger rolled her eyes at his antics but her smile said she was pleased, and she swept her arm out to the side, offering the beach, "the more the merrier," she chirped, and soon she was instructing them on where to sit, positioning them so they were seated in a line facing the ocean (she had been about to have them the other way but had switched it when she saw Dustin's frantic headshakes (he didn't like seeing the ocean but he preferred to have it in his line of sight, where he could keep an eye on it, rather then behind him)) and herself in front of them, back to the ocean._

_Normally Dustin would have parked himself next to Shane, but seeing as his truce with the ocean may very well be temporary (and with more silent communication with Tori) he positioned himself to be as far away from Shane as he could be, with Blake serving as a barrier between them._

_If he noticed (or if it bothered him) Shane didn't show it, instead he merely complied with all of Tori's commands, setting himself down for some good team bonding._

_The meditation…the meditation was actually really nice. Maybe Tori had planned to do this all along because while he was still by the ocean, and he could still hear it and see it, doing this, meditating, it wasn't all that bad. He couldn't force himself to be unaware of it, couldn't completely surrender to his task, but it did make it better, and a lot more manageable._

_On the bright side, he wasn't almost crying this time._

_Maybe he was still a superhero extraordinaire. _

_**His** form of meditating (Tori was leading them through her form but he had stopped paying attention about eight seconds in) was to go to his happy place, and his happy place, naturally, featured all of his friends, but most specifically Shane and Cam. _

_He wondered what Cam was doing right now. He hadn't gotten to see much of him since he became a ranger (even on Monday night he had been too distracted to play along with him during the battle scenes), every time he went in to sweep Cam was always too busy in the lab coding **this** or building **that** or maybe not in the lab at all, but in the zordbay, checking out the latest battle damage and cursing them for not being better at ducking (though in Dustin's defense it was really hard to move the megazord when it wasn't in lightning mode)._

_Dustin knew it had to be hard, with everything Cam did before (like, all the support stuff, and being the smart guy) added to all the stuff he had to do now (the rangering) he **had** to have a lot of stuff on his plate, there was like, no other way for it to be. _

_In response to this Dustin had…slightly, well, he tried to keep out of Cam's hair. Yes, he still showed up at the Ops almost every night (because someone had to feed Leonard and it wasn't going to be Cam, the guy was lucky if he remembered to feed himself) but he didn't get (or try) to talk as much. He **did** do all the cleaning, though some stuff Cam wouldn't let him touch because of that **one** dusting accident where he had shocked himself (but come on, that could have happened to anybody) so the lab wasn't as clean as it could be._

_Wow…he almost hadn't noticed it because he had been so caught up with his stupid self, but now that he thought about it Cam wasn't starting to look so good. Like, **way** tired and stuff._

_Dustin should check in on him later, make sure he ate something._

_And slept, because while Cam may be incredibly awesome, he was not superman. _

_He should talk to Shane about it, see what he knew. Maybe Shane already had it covered, like, he was already on the down low, but Dustin would talk to him anyway, just to make sure. Someone had to take care of the team smart guy. He is a very valuable resource (and very important friend)._ _Shane too, also important friend and resource… not that Dustin was doing a good job of proving that now. Shane was being all nice and a good friend and here he was lying (and encouraging others to lie) to him. Guilt, a foreign emotion, weighed itself in Dustin's stomach, mingling with his nerves until his midsection reached a whole new level of wavering uneasiness. _

_This wasn't right. _

…_but he couldn't…he hated himself for it, but he couldn't tell him. It was like…admitting how…how __**bad**__ he was, that he failed, that he wasn't good enough, and telling Tori and Blake had been unavoidable but telling Shane._

_What if he didn't want to be his friend anymore?_

_Who wanted to be friends with a weakling?_

_**That's** why he couldn't say anything, that's why they had to do all this sneaking around and lying. So he could get stronger, better, so he wouldn't fail the team._

_So no one had any reason to hate him._

Late afternoon passed into early evening quickly, forcing the rangers to abandon their beach and make their way home (mostly to make an appearance for their parents, at least, in Tori and Shane's case) before jaunting on over to Ninja Ops for training.

Again for appearances sake they joked about their beach day, prodding at Hunter and Cam for missing out (the latter looking tense and _almost_ like grumpy-back-before-power-rangers Cam, but when Dustin had thought about reaching out to him it was his turn to talk about the beach and then Cam's face went from grumpy to murderous so he backed off).

Now was a nice relief after that, bringing Dustin full circle back to the bathroom, tugging off his shoes, leaving him alone with his thoughts.

He couldn't help but think of all the damage he was doing.

He was hurting Cam (or Cam was getting hurt but he couldn't help him because of the lying so in a way he _was_ hurting him), he _was_ hurting Shane (if his friend ever found out about the blue-yellow secret pact he would probably never talk to Dustin again), Hunter, his friend, was completely out in the dust and probably wouldn't care so much but he _would_ when he figured out his brother was lying to him and he would even _more_ angry when he found out the reason _why_, so yes, he was hurting both of the Thunder's. Tori was the best off because her love interest person was in on it too, but Dustin was making her lie to her Cam and Shane who were pretty much her brother's so in a way he was putting her down the hole as well.

All of them; he was hurting all of them and he was too selfish to do anything about it because if he did it would hurt him so much _more_.

The water coursed down the drain steadily, rhythm changing once he stepped under the spray, heat turned up as much as it could go.

He would just have to fix it faster, start going to the beach by himself at night or something, just push himself out there and get it done.

Then he could stop hurting everyone.

And maybe he could help Cam.

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His pride had been too wounded to admit the sandwich had been delicious and just what he needed at the time (his stomach pleased to no longer be twisting in knots and eating away at his insides) but he could discern from Shane's delighted and pitifully muted hums that the other knew this whether he vocalized it or not, smiling at him innocently from his spot on the floor, joining Cam in their impromptu dinner.

It had been a good decision in the end, granting Cam the sustenance he needed without taking away from his business, and by the end of the sandwich (he regretted its loss) all zord simulations and programmed responses had been inputted into his A.I. All he had left to do now (aside from minor tweaks to it's personality, he couldn't have Cyber Cam function in his exact manner or confusion would be imminent) was setting up the actual physical interface. It was a delicate and tricky thing, but if he pulled an all nighter and pushed through most of tomorrow, he could theoretically have the prototype up and running. After that he could take a brief nap, work out the kinks, and viola', instant henchman.

He would require a little more… "juice" to make it through the night, so he pushed his plate aside and threw open his side drawer, searching to find his favorite crutch and coming up frustratingly empty handed.

If he had to make another early night pill-run his mood was going to take a definite downturn.

"Looking for these?"

He didn't need to look to know what Shane held in his hand, a small rattle indicating it was in fact, his pill bottle, though when he got it (earlier, when he was passed out, somehow he hadn't noticed their absence before now) was a mystery. "You know these things are way bad for you, right?"

The question was rhetorical, so Cam moved on, "Just one more night," he pressed, silently pleading for some understanding, "then you can have them."

A junkie's words, but he wasn't addicted, they were tools, and right now he really did need them.

Shane's eyes were hard, disagreeing and unyielding. "No," he muttered, pushing the container back into his pocket. "It," he began, nodding at the computer, "can wait."

"I've done everything you wanted," Cam spat, words tumbling out before he could consider censoring them, "just let me-"

"No," Shane repeated, rising to his feet, and Cam followed him quickly, refusing to give him a height advantage, "I'm not letting you get like that again."

Cam scowled, shoulders tensing, "That was a one time-"

"And what about next time," Shane asked, squaring his shoulders, "and the time after that?" slowly he stepped forward, eyes locked on Cam's, "Are you allowed to run yourself ragged any time you feel like it? What if there's an attack?"

"I'll be fine," he ground out, clenching his jaw, wondering when the red ranger had managed to worm his way under his skin so effectively, wondering when he had allowed it to happen.

The other reached out, causing Cam to retreat back a few steps, but he pressed forward, eventually grabbing a hold of Cam's shoulder. "Yes," he murmured, grip firm, "you will be, because I'm going to make sure of it." Cam opened his mouth to protest but Shane leaned forward, surpassing physical boundaries in an unfair way. "I'm taking you to bed, we can either walk there, or I can carry you," the moment he offered to let that sink in was wasted on miniscule shudders and Cam wishing he could force himself to turn away, stricken with desires that had nothing to do with the conversation.

"Choose," Shane demanded, and the tech simply nodded, reaching over to shut off his monitor in surrender.

He followed the red ranger down the hallway, broken and weary, and into his room, numbly registering the sleep clothes that were pressed into his hands.

He changed in the bathroom, exiting to find Shane dressed similarly, waiting by his bed.

Cam froze, uncertain, numb on the inside, but Shane took over like it was just another training simulation, like it was nothing _(but it was)_, leading him through the steps. His clothes were disposed of in the hamper, and he was carefully led to the bed, sliding into position next to Shane.

If the fight hadn't been completely drained from him he would have objected, because Shane wasn't supposed to stay, he wasn't supposed to be okay with this, but the other simply positioned them as they had been that morning (smoothly, though Cam was tense without the overwhelming exhaustion to ease him into it).

Eventually he settled down, night closing in on him, lulled to sleep by the soft heartbeat beneath his ear.

* * *

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* * *

Endnotes:

I apologize for the delay, I managed to write Dustin's flashback but then I got all excited because it was almost Easter which meant Lent was almost over and I pretty much wasted all of Sunday in a sugar/food/caffeine coma.

Note to self: chugging Dr. Pepper at midnight _might_ be delicious and satisfying at the time, but the caffeine _will_ kick in, probably three hours later, and you are going to be _really _angry from 3-5 am.

…it was slightly worth it.

I'm still recovering from the calorie overdose, but it was nice to take a break, and even better that I got some barbeque out of it.

Anyhow, big, gigantic, happy, wonderful thanks to Rogue Ranger for his review, the feedback was _awesome _because I never really noticed how jarring the scene transitions could be, so I'll try to keep doing what I did in chapter 27 to make it easier on you guys. Anything I can do to improve, I'm willing to try.

…for the most part.

So…on to the story?

...Yeah, I should probably move onto that.

More Cam and Shane, because I like writing Cam and Shane and I was having some slight issues with Dustin's part. I wasn't entirely sure were to go, or how far to go, so I moved on to what I actually _could_ write and went from there.

We _will_ get a recap of Cam and Hunter's time together, next time, but now that I've started this hopping around time business it's really growing on me. It allows me to put some of my more favorite parts with some of my less favorite parts.

Also, if you haven't checked out Linkara's History of Power Rangers, I suggest you do.

He isn't as in love with Ninja Storm as I am, but it's nice to see a fresh perspective, (in a humorous way): http:/ thatguywiththeglasses. com/ videolinks/ linkara/ hopr/ 30312- power- rangers-ninja - storm

Until next time.


	29. My Defenses Are Down

Chapter 29

My Defenses are Down

I don't own Annie Get Your Gun, and I hope to God I never do.

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Patient fingers threaded their way through his hair, randomly selecting and reselecting their paths, slow and smooth and hypnotic and achieving their owner's desired goal of comforting while simultaneously going horribly astray, igniting agonizing assaults of inner conflict. Fortunately, fatigue was enough of a hindrance that he could manage to impede such lines of thought and simply appreciate what was so freely given to him, though the nagging would never completely go away.

In other words, it was just another morning for Cam Watanabe.

It should bother him, how quickly he had become accustomed to welcoming company into his bed, or how appropriate it felt to disregard all physical boundaries with his team leader, or how said leader appeared to share his lack of concern.

No, he _was_ concerned; he had simply resigned himself to the will of the red ranger.

It was _Shane_ who was unconcerned and remained completely oblivious to…well, just about all the implications of his actions.

Too much time with Dustin, that's what this could be chalked up to.

The fingers halted their lazy treks on a cue Cam hadn't witnessed and redirected themselves, trailing down his skull, grazing past his neck, provoking a shiver he could not contain, before ending their journey in the middle of his back, pressing into him in a way that was both gentle and firm, communicating encouragement and somehow grounding him, an echoing reminder he was not in this thing alone.

It was maddening, how well Shane had learned to play him.

And it was _insanity_ that he had instigated it in the first place.

Against his better judgment he rubbed his right hand leisurely against Shane's far side, more because he could then for any other reason, and as expected he instigated no response (the air ninja had sparred and trained so vigorously that the odds that he would feel, let alone still be sensitive to such a delicate touch in an area that was so frequently targeted by assault was unlikely).

He shouldn't give into these urges, as harmless as they were currently. If he allowed himself to become lax with his…touches, it was highly likely that he would get carried away, crossing the line for what was allowed into what was definitely _not_ allowed.

It didn't help that Shane encouraged _every, little, thing_.

He swears, just one twitch of his finger in the darker teens direction calls for a celebration, which translates in Shane's world as increasing interactions of an even greater intimate nature.

As though it were possible.

The red ranger seemed to find his hesitations as a great source of entertainment, which also did little to help with Cam's restraint despite the fact he was well aware that there could quite possibly be a ploy behind those legitimate reactions (he did not doubt the authenticity of Shane's responses, but that did not signify complete and total innocence).

Then again, that could just be his paranoid nature coming back into play.

He had briefly considered switching his tactics from defensive to offensive. Instead of being the injured (or in this case, bothered/ruffled/churned up) party, _he_ would carry out some kind of action that would instigate an uneasy reaction that would provoke Shane into reevaluation his scheme and eventually lead to him abandoning it altogether.

…Unfortunately that plan fell short when he became aware of just _how_ distressed and embarrassed he could incline to be when willingly wrapping a leg around another person's, let alone it being Shane, let alone how uncomfortably justified it felt, igniting…he would rather not address what it ignited per say, the point is that it was more then evident that Shane was far better equipped to play chicken then he was.

…footsy…he get's freaking turned on by _footsy._

It was not a good blow to his pride.

He would tell himself, time and again (it was practically his inner mantra), that this challenge, like all those that had presented themselves before it, was simply a matter of mind over body. That statement alone wasn't entirely accurate, (currently his mind could be attributed with a majority of his issues), to put it in better words, when approaching a problem it is all in your _mindset_.

Your mind is as powerful as any weapon you can think of, better, in most cases. How you interact with friends and enemies is all a matter of choice. Ultimately, you choose which actions, words, and emotions you react to. By that logic all he really needed to do was compartmentalize his mind, shoving aside the raging chaos that were his emotions into a dark corner where they could do no damage, and eradicate his libido completely.

He had tried it, many times during the course of the night he had put great efforts into focusing his mind on training, Cyber Cam, the zords, _anything,_ but something about Shane inspired a warmth inside his body, tiny innumerable fireworks exploding underneath his skin, and were it only…if it was simply a matter of attraction…

…but it wasn't. There was something else there, the beginnings of something he didn't want to begin to comprehend even though it was cutting at him so deeply and he didn't know _why_-

"Run it by me again."

It took him a moment to recognize what had been said, the muffled whisper shattering the silence of the room but _barely_ being distinguished over the bustle of his mental tirade and Cam gladly latched onto the distraction and threw away the chaos, centering his attention on the warmth and the words and the body lying next to him.

Now what had he said?

_Run it by me again._

…right, they had been talking, well, whispering, and Shane was asking for clarification.

_Clarification of...?_

…Saturday, Hunter, the-

_Right._

The lunch.

He shuddered and buried his face against Shane's chest, briefly indulging himself and earning a comforting chuckle and the return of the massaging fingers into his hair, and Cam had to force his mind to stay on topic and _not_ wander into territories of thanking himself for partaking in what could easily be classified as one of the most catastrophic dates of his life.

A laughable thought that one, as to the present it had been the _only_ date he had engaged in (disregarding these reticent moments with Shane).

If such a miserable exchange of events could be classified as a date.

Fortunately, the disastrous experience of their rendezvous was isolated to his person.

If he had analyzed the situation correctly, he can at least take a moderate amount of comfort in the fact that Hunter hadn't perceived the incident to be nearly as depressingly pathetic as it actually had been.

…In layman's terms, the afternoon had gone horribly, but because of Hunter's persistence the blond was willing to say it had only gone _badly_.

A mild victory, if considered a victory at all.

"Come on Cam," the good shepherd coaxed, attempting to break through the tech's quiet reservations; (he had delivered the bare bones of what had transpired, were details truly necessary?) and when calm prodding seemed completely fruitless he alerted his approach to a more tactile form of persuasion, inclining his head ever so slightly to where his lips were just _barely_ grazing the topmost strands of Cam's hair, subtly and effectively willing the green ranger into compliance while simultaneously devouring his soul with a wave of new and improved hatred.

Cam tightened his grip against the red ranger's side, praying for an end and loathing the very thought of it.

The fingers halted once more, palm flattening against the back of his skull, and a hint of worry edged into his…into Shane's voice, concerned by his lack of response, "Cam?"

…_Mental focus…mindset, just fix your…_

He should not be incapacitated this easily.

He inhaled slowly, taking in a steady breath, and gradually released it, impelling the tension that had gathered in his body to dissipate with it, leaving him with only his usual anxieties that resulted from being overworked and underloved.

"I'm here," he whispered, attempting to ensure some level of comfort to his enabler, though he is not totally sure of his success.

He continues before his hesitation becomes an issue, passing over his smaller dilemma in favor of tackling his more monstrous, unfavorable, and humiliating one.

"Just let it go," he murmurs, and the agitated grunt he receives in return is enough of an indication that in his bed companion's eyes this story is as far from _"let go"_ as it gets.

However, he is kind enough to willingly bypass outright expressing this to avoid further agitation, so instead Shane elects to do what he supposes is the more calming route, letting out a chuckle while he toys with Cam's hair, pressing his lips down _just_ enough for there to be the minutest of pressure against his skin and Cam shivers again, assaulted with contrasting impulses of assaulting his leader so that the time dedicated to resting may actually be spent _resting_, and the stronger urge to put those lips to much better use.

Cam flushes at the thought, almost pulling away from Shane completely (it _had_ to be morning by this point) but the warning thoughts of what would come from such actions halted his reaction immediately (Shane's plan of action for tackling what made one uncomfortable was to throw yourself in it, in this case his leader perceives his unwillingness to cuddle as something that can be resolved through massive amounts of it).

…One of these days Shane is going to make him do something they will both regret, and he will have no one but himself to blame for it.

"_Cam,_" the voice jokes, relentless, and thankfully the lips are withdrawn, finally sensing a line Cam isn't willing to cross yet and for once respecting the boundary.

The hand in his hair however, continues to make itself busy, so total retreat was not a considered option.

Still, it's the little things.

"If you give me the details," Shane begins, explaining the motive Cam was already aware of, "we can see where you went wrong."

_I know where I went wrong,_ Cam thought, resisting the urge to smack Shane upside the head, _I agreed to do this in the first place._

…would it really be so awful to allow Hunter to pursue Dustin?

He doesn't even finish completing the thought before a passionate and vehement response echoes in his brain, a feeling of unease churning in his stomach, hot and uncontrolled screaming that the answer is yes, yes it would be.

These feelings…these…

He had an inexplicable and unwavering _need_ to protect the yellow ranger, to keep him in his current state of happiness and oblivious innocence. There were no words he could put to it, there was…there wasn't a way to justify it, and he had given up attempting to quantify these ideals with logic, he had simply come to…it had become a part of him.

Similar to his other issues regarding the nature of his relationships with his teammates, it brought along its fair share of headaches and distresses.

It was a Catch-22 of sorts.

To…"protect" Dustin, they had to keep him isolated and…in a way, dictate his choices for him. If Cam stepped back and evaluated the situation without bias or emotion he would be forced to admit that neither he, nor Shane, nor _anyone_ had the right to dictate how the members of this team decided to pursue their relationships. If by chance Cam or Shane had misread Dustin, or allowed their beliefs to cloud their judgment, there was a possibility the yellow ranger could be more then welcome to the idea of…dating Hunter.

Though for some odd reason just the mentioned idea of it makes Cam die a little on the inside.

…hormones…teenage inclination to overreaction.

That's all that feeling is.

"Cam?"

There's shifting, and with a startled jerk Cam realizes he must have zoned out for longer then he should have and suddenly Shane is in front of him, on his side, hand brushing against the side of his face while his warm eyes express nothing but the strongest concerns.

It is a compelling reminder that inaction is just as powerful a reaction as any.

Cam blinks in clarification, coercing his body to remain still but relaxed, resisting the temptation of falling completely into that stare. "I was just…thinking," he whispered, yearning to grab at the teasing appendage but terrified of the repercussions it might illicit.

Fortunately, yet much to his dismay, his impulse was communicated, though he kept well to his silence, and Shane retreated the probing fingers, altering their course south, persuading Cam to close his eyes and send silent thanks to Lothor for ensuring his residence in the solitary darkness that concealed his look of giddy anticipation (anticipation that had less to do with the concept of intertwined fingers and more with highly impossible urges his hormones were continually praying for).

He flushes again, embarrassed and minutely aroused, and he gladly meets the descending digits, interlacing their fingers before Shane could pass into the thoroughly restricted area of his waist.

The leader misreads his enthusiasm and attempts to muffle a quiet laugh, unwilling to increase Cam's hesitation or wound his ego. He repositions their joined hands with a grace usually reserved for solitary training, carelessly allowing the tech a peek into his private nature, exposing a part of himself strictly and exclusively for Cam and allowing vulnerability that communicated total trust.

In a way, it was more daunting then any of the physical reactions he tended to stimulate.

Cam tried not to flinch or pull away, mentally berating himself and his wandering thoughts.

God, what was wrong with him?

His efforts to maintain a calm disposition must have paid off because Shane carried on none the wiser, continually unaware of himself, "You're supposed to be resting."

If Cam could indulge himself with the fantasy of an intimate relationship, he would say there was a certain fondness to the joking tone the leader used. Unfortunately, the intellect he prided himself on refused to allow him such frivolous endeavors, and a weight he could only describe but refused to acknowledge as disappointment weighed down in his chest, adding to the ever growing accumulation of tension.

Stress, it was stress.

A squeeze against his hand urged him back outside the safety and churning chaos of his mind, reminding him that Shane was not a man of great patience.

Cam forces a smile he knew the other could not see, attempting to capture a relaxed and subdued disposition by portraying the necessary indicators.

"Then why are we talking?" he murmurs and brings it home with a small chuckle, taking a hint from the other teen's playbook by playing at playful. Much to his pleasure he genuinely managed to pull it off, even succeeding in moderately brightening his spirits.

It was short lived however, when a voice in the back of his overactive mind gave the smallest whisper that his mood could not entirely be credited to himself, but to the company he kept.

The tension returned, heavy and unpleasant, and he tightens his grip on Shane's hand, needing to anchor himself to _something._

Shane returns the squeeze and the chuckle, humor in high supply this morning, and teasing that definitely could _not_ be teasing returned to his voice with a small warning, "_Cam._"

No more playing, no more running.

Cam sighed and resigned himself to his fate, accepting that he had to be a little more forthcoming then he previously had been.

"Fine," he groaned, silently agreeing to concede, but only, and he meant it, only _just_ a fraction more. Shane shifted his head closer, staring into where he thought the techs eyes might be and he tapped the side of his hand impatiently, remarkably eager considering how early the hour was.

Cam sighs again and his hand receives a comforting squeeze. Still, he hesitated slightly to increase the red ranger's anticipation before he grudgingly admits, "I might have been a little snappy."

Were he able to see the tan Samoan, he would not doubt that he lit up at his exceptionally coaxed response, like a dog that finally got his bone, and he radiated excitement, glad to finally be going somewhere with his line of inquiry.

"Details?" Shane asks, voice almost begging his presentiment was so great, and Cam jerks his head, refusing to go back to that place even in his mind.

"No," he denies, pulling his hand back in warning of total withdrawal but Shane persists, holding on firm.

"Cam-" the other breaks in, voice tinged with the tiniest amounts of desperation.

The tech _almost_ surrenders and asks _what_ is exactly _so_ pressing, but instead he tilts his head forward, bold and daring, until he can _just_ feel his bangs brush against Shane's forehead while echoing vehemently, "_No_."

Based on his past behavior this move is very adventurous for him, though unlike his other interactions, this is a calculated risk. In order for Shane's avocation to be mutually benefitting, there had to be a basic set of rules from which they could both refer to in order to ensure at least a smidgeon of order and peace of mind. From what Cam has observed, the ground rule that has been established was relatively close to a "you can't have your cake and eat it to" standpoint. Or perhaps, it is more like a "Cake or death" sort of thing if you possessed a certain fondness for Eddie Izzard.

To put it simply, it was a give and take relationship.

You had to "give" something; in this case Cam was instigating an intimate physical response in order to "take" his privacy, or, to avoid supplying the details that seemed so precious to his leader.

In this way, each of them held a semblance of power. Cam was allowed to choose between the two options, and Shane was there to accept it. Neither one of them got what they completely wanted, which might explain why it was both incredibly effective and ridiculously frustrating for them.

There's a slight pause, and Cam can tell Shane is contemplating pushing further, mentally weighing if his tactile response was great enough for him to drop the matter completely, and Cam sees his opportunity. Before the other can obtain an chance to speak the green ranger moves again, shifting his body lower so that he can bury his face in Shane's chest, joined hands hovering close between them but not quite jammed.

Balanced delicately on a razor edge.

Another moment passes where Shane reevaluates once more, and then he sighs, conceding that enough has been given. Cam smirks against the smooth touch of his sleep shirt, his first in a while since keeping to Shane's exclusive company.

Though it is short lived as the red ranger was always one to seek out "the last word", so to speak, and an arm worms its way around Cam's waist, light but firm, and comes to a rest in the small of his back, warm hand pressing gently, massaging the neglected area with thoughtless consideration.

Cam buries his face deeper, and Shane elects to find some pity within his heart, stilling his hand and moving on.

"What made you snappy?"

_Plenty of things._

But he supposes that Shane would prefer him to be specific, at least, if the conversation leading up to this point is any indication.

He cannot help but squirm awkwardly as his mind travels back to the afternoon in question, and Shane, dedicated to his cure-all, responds by shifting their positions, releasing his grip on the tech's hand just long enough to guide an arm under Cam to shift him against his side, slipping onto his back and efficiently curling the green ranger around him, moving the teasing hand from against his back to the cursed hyper-sensitive side of his waist.

Increased meditation had forged his mind into a tool of constant awareness, so unlike his leader, certain areas of his body were actually _more_ susceptible to touch. Shane was more then aware of this by now, and frequently used it to his advantage.

It was one of his more favored interrogation techniques.

Cam latches onto the conversation, pouring his focus into it and ignoring the burning weight against his hip. "I was…"

What was he really? Bothered? Concerned? Irritable?

"Uncomfortable," he settles on, concluding it is the best stimulation for his agitated state during Hunter's surprise lunch date.

Shane gives a thoughtful _"hmm"_ under his breath, subconsciously stroking his thumb across the outside of his midriff. "With?" he asks, but Cam's too preoccupied to answer, and he decides to put an end to his torment, taking a firm hold of the devious hand. The movements still, communicating that the tech has now taken something.

Next, came the giving.

"Come on Cam," Shane whispers, squeezing his hand because just the idea of remaining still for any period of time boggles his mind. He tilts his head down again, brushing the tips of his hair reminiscent of their earlier encounter, and he lowers his voice, providing the illusion of secrecy.

"I won't judge."

It's an honest answer, Cam knows full well by this point simply by observing how Shane interacted with Dustin that judgment was never an issue. His mind was open, his confidence impeccable, and Cam sighs again, tracing his thumb along the rough calluses scattered across the red ranger's hand.

He indulges himself with a moment of silence, prolonging the inevitable, and just as when Shane is about to remind him of their unspoken deal he clears his throat and mumbles, "Flirting."

There's a momentary pause, and then, "What?"

Cam flushes and grits his teeth, knowing that with his enhanced senses Shane heard him perfectly clear despite how quickly and softly he had murmured the word, and he feels his insides churn into a nervous buzzing, embarrassed by what he has to admit and angry for Shane ensuring he speak it loud and clear.

He exhales sharply through his nose and forces his teeth to unclench, squeezing Shane's hand tight. "Flirting," he grinds out, sure to posses just the _right_ amount of volume and clarity.

Closing his eyes, he tries to uncover a way to properly explain himself, but his long hours of training combined with his longer hours of work and his continuous state of mental frenzy leave it difficult to communicate his shortcomings when he does not fully understand them himself, so the best he can and generate are meager half sentences, spilling out of his mouth gracelessly, "I'm not…I haven't…"

Why can't Lothor just attack now?

Why can't a hole in the floor just open up and suck him under, ending his misery?

Flirting had…it wasn't a requirement to be a ninja _or_ a ranger, it was never important and therefore never a priority, which all seemed perfectly reasonable but just admitting it to another person made him feel less then…

By now Shane is familiar with how active his mind is, and he attempts to cut through his inner discord before the tides become too tremulous.

"There's no shame in that Cam," he reassures, and Cam can't help but roll his eyes.

"Yes there is," he argues, attacking his faults. "It's my job now isn't it?" It's a rhetorical question, and Cam's just beginning to build up the loathing. "How am I supposed to…" he trails off, uncomfortable with how to phrase it. "How am I supposed to…win him over if….if I can't…?"

Talk to him

Look at him

_Flirt_ with him

_Easy,_ the teasing voice in the back of his mind replied, _just pretend he's-_

"Forget this," Cam spits, pushing away the mental murmur and beginning to disengage himself from Shane, "I'm getting up."

All he needed was a shower.

Just a shower and then straight to his computer where he could work, work, work all day and spend all his time focusing on Cyber Cam, and _not_ on certain problematic blonds, or flirting, or infuriating Samoans, or _thinking_…

He actually succeeds in pulling himself away, a success that is most likely attributed to the fact that his choice of action occurred too suddenly for Shane to prepare for it, and Cam begins throwing blankets off (more have seemed to accumulate on his bed ever since Dustin had stayed over that fateful night two and a half weeks ago. The curly haired teen had been sneaking them into his room to make it more "cozy").

Shane reacts instantly, sitting up beside him and blocking his way off of the bed (one of his more tactful decisions had been to place Cam against the wall). He does not close the distance between them; he merely places a hand against his forearm, his grip loose but comforting. "No, Cam," he urges, and continues to keep his distance. "I'm sorry," he rubs small circles against his shoulder and Cam wants to punch him, to let out just a _minute_ fraction of his frustration.

The air is tense because the conversation has changed, the rules have altered, reverse to their previous conditions. Barely any physical touch meant that they were about to enter the very emotional and very frank portion of their agreement, disallowing Cam from hiding his honest answers behind sarcasm and deflection.

…On the bright side, there was less of a chance for his libido to become excited.

Flames rise to his cheeks, and he thanks Lothor once more for the darkness.

Meanwhile Shane continues, voice sincere and calming, "I know this…this kind've sucks for you, but I promise, I won't judge you." He pauses, allowing that to sink in sufficiently, though he had said it once before.

It was one of the few things Cam _was_ in need of constant reassurance, whether he openly admitted to it or not.

"You don't need to be embarrassed," he says quietly, and Cam scoffs, tapping his fingers anxiously against his thigh.

"Somehow," Cam drawls, hints of sarcasm sneaking in entirely unintentionally, a force of habit, and he grins, attempting to find humor, "I don't find that very comforting."

Shane lets that one slide, mindful of his defense mechanisms. "Well you should," he replies, tone light, and then he gives a pause, mood changing to a more serious note, "…how bad was it?"

Cam hesitates before replying, toying nervously with the edge of a bright yellow blanket before he replies, completely honest, completely true, "…awful."

Shane fails to fight the laugh instigated by _that_ comment and Cam can tell he's shaking his head, "I assume you're not being overdramatic."

_I assume you __**are**__ being stupid._

…nice Cam, _real_ nice.

Instead of supplying Shane with a tongue lashing he won't soon forget, Cam decides to give a laugh and pushes the offending hand off of his shoulder, "You may leave now."

Shane rushes to apologize, "Okay, okay, sorry," he reconciles, but his voice is still full of levity. The stubborn hand returns, but it is alone, no further advances are made. "No overreactions," the red ranger soothes, calming his ego, "it was awful." There's a pause, like there's a question Shane doesn't quite want to ask, but after a moments hesitation he seems to give into himself, voice low but steady. "Were you nervous?"

Cam's reply is instant, "No," he snaps automatically out of habit, but then his bed mate releases a small, disappointed sigh and he deflates a little, tracing his fingers through the blankets folds. "…a little," he admits when he can work up the courage to bare it, and Shane perks up, casting aside his crestfallen disposition and centering his focus on the problem at hand.

"Just…be yourself," he offers, the best advice he can seem to come up with. Cam makes a low sound in the back of his throat, disbelieving and Shane leans forward trying to take his point home, "What, he seems to like that."

"Sure," the tech mumbles, "it's just that easy."

"It usually is," the other supplies, and Cam glares in the direction of his head.

"This isn't-"

"If anything," Shane interrupts, bypassing the inefficient delay of denial and shifting on to things more productive, "just…try to like some of the things he does."

_Just try to like some of the tings he does._

Oh, so that's all he needed to do.

And here he had been trying to be-

…forget what he had tried to be.

It was unimportant.

"Seriously?" Cam asks despite himself, wanting almost to just climb into the other's lap so he can end this conversation and wait the…fifteen minutes until he was allowed out of his bed.

Yes…he now had a bed time _and_ an out-of-bed time.

On top of all his other problems it seems he has acquired a mother.

Shane lets the sarcasm slide off him, his entire focus centered on Cam's nerves, "You're a smart guy; just…memorize some motocross stats or something. Show up to his races. Give him like…a _look_ every once and a while."

…those things were actually within his limit.

Memorizing facts was one of his greater strengths, and spending a couple hours outside getting some fresh air wouldn't be a problem so long as he was allowed his laptop. He would watch Hunter's races of course, but he was not required to give random strangers his devoted attention.

All of it was pretty sound advice; there was just one thing that Cam remained mystified to.

"A look?" Cam echoes, puzzling which of the _thousand_-plus facial expressions Shane could possibly be referring to that would enhance his wooing capabilities.

Maybe if he asked for a demonstration he would be able to mirror it.

"You know…" Shane begins after awkwardly clearing his throat, "like a…_ "Come and sex me" _look."

_Like a come and…_

Cam's mind freezes at the word "sex", completely shutting down and rebooting itself, allowing just enough time for him to give a startled balk that changes into a cough and soon he is hacking madly, gasping for breath while his brain recommences function and waves upon waves of thought and emotion are dumped down upon him.

When he recovers his breath he recognizes Shane's hands grasping either side of his shoulders, steadying him, and he is mortified to discover his desire for a demonstration increase exponentially.

He shoves that want aside with Shane's hands and leans back against his wall, pulling his legs up against his chest.

How did he think he could do this?

The red ranger gives him a few minutes to recover before picking up again, featherweight grip against his elbow. "Okay, maybe that's a little too advanced right now."

"Come and…" Cam repeats and flushes once more, unable to complete the sentence. "You're crazy."

"It won't take much," Shane offers, trying to defend his idea.

"You're crazy!" Cam echoes, part of his anger and desperation and need exploding out of him.

"Cam-" the leader begins, but Cam cuts him off, not wanting to hear any of his qualifiers. Of course, in his haste the words just tumble out of him, lacking the grace and finesse normally applicable to his conversation.

In other words, he is completely honest.

"I don't want him to…" he starts and trails off, clamping a hand over his mouth.

One of the many things he had been avoiding was discussing his reluctance to his mission or any of its aspects. There was enough guilt generated between the two of them, there was no need to weigh Shane down with unnecessary troubles.

That was the last thing Cam wanted.

The distance must be eating at Shane more then he was willing to admit because he gives it up, moving to comfort in the best way he knows, arm's wrapping around Cam in a grip so tight he almost thinks they were separated for years as opposed to a few minutes, "…if you don't want to do this…"

"I want to do this," Cam declares, murmuring against his neck and he puts his mind past the leaping feeling in his chest, the relief he swears he is incapable of feeling.

"Cam-" Shane starts, running a hand through his hair.

"I _want_ to do this," he repeats firmly, pulling back just enough to look Shane in the metaphorical eye.

They're close, ridiculously near, and Cam can feel the hot breath ghost across his face, drawing nearer until…

"Then you should know…" Shane whispers, forehead against his, "that kind of…that stuff might happen."

Cam wants to nod, voice caught in his throat, it would be so easy to just accidentally brush noses and then brush…

He pulls away before the temptation becomes to great, firmly placing his cheek against Shane's shoulder, "We'll get to that bridge when we cross it."

"Right…" Shane chuckles, that fondness that isn't fondness creeping into his tone, "at this rate we'll never have to worry about that."

Cam stiffens, heat rising to his cheeks, "I'm trying-"

"I know-"

"No you-" he starts but bites it back, shaking his head furiously, "You just…this isn't my area of expertise."

Shane sighs and massages his scalp, continuing the tantalizing circles that leave the tech in such an agonized state of bliss. "I'm sorry Cam."

"Apology accepted," the green ranger replies, almost surrendering himself to the relaxing touch. His mind reawakes before it is completely gone, and he grasps at one of their past, safer subjects to keep himself occupied. "…motocross?"

"Just a little," Shane guarantees, moving his work down to his neck, "If he sees that you've put a little effort into him, he'll keep chasing."

"That easy?" Cam asks, melting into it and biting back a moan.

"Just like the things he likes," the leader offers, pressing down on a particular tense point. "…and don't try to ward him off with barbeque sauce."

He almost misses the comment he is so lost in Shane's ministrations, and he coughs quietly, hiding his absence. "…it was a reflex."

Of course he would bring up the barbeque sauce.

"Sure it was," the other jokes, humming in a jovial way.

"He snuck up behind me," Cam insists but doesn't have the heart to truly give it the affirmation he normally would have.

The sarcasm is back, and just as unbelieving, "I'm sure he did."

Cam couldn't tell him that his mind had been to preoccupied with their initial bed meeting to be able to register Hunter's presence, that he truly _had_ sneaked up on him.

He had not done it out of spite.

However…

"…it's kind of funny," Cam admits, working up the nerve to return Shane's favor, "now that I look back on it."

Timidly, slowly, he edges one of his hands to a safe area on the red rangers back, grappling at the abused muscles there and earning a contented sigh in return.

"I'm sure he'll see it that way too."

His confidence boosted, Cam begins to edge his toes into untested waters.

"At least it wasn't the potato salad," he jokes, finally feeling candidly relieved and Shane relaxes, his spirit infectious.

"Oh?" he asks, coyly if Cam's mind was allowed to have its way.

The techs face breaks into a smile, grin bold by the newly discovered sensitive spot near Shane's spine, "I am _deadly_ with potato salad."

The laugh he earns lifts up his spirits and his grin broadens, morning looking up for once.

If he desired his flirting interactions to have maximum success, he would need plenty of practice.

And if anything, Cam was a man who took his training _very_ seriously.

-:-:-:-:-:-

Endnotes:

Hey! Hey!

HEY! Hey! Hey! Hey! HEY!

...HEYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!

I'm not dead, and neither is this story!

…just thought you'd like to know.

So…yeah, it's been what, about two months since I updated? Yeah…sorry about that. I hit a bit of a…well, it wasn't necessarily writer's block, I knew what I was _supposed_ to write, I just…didn't want to.

Yeah…originally I was going to do a legit flashback with Hunter and Cam on their horrible date, but…well, I couldn't do it, I wasn't inspired. So I just kept pushing it off and working on easier stories when it finally occurred to me…

If I don't want to do that thing I really don't want to do, why don't I just _not_ do it?

….which made incredibly great sense to me.

So no, there will be no flashback of that incident, sorry.

I'll try not to make promises I can't keep.

Like updating. I don't know _when_ my next update will be, but I _can_ say it will be in less then two months. This trouble spot is over, it should be easy sailing from here.

Or, _easier_ sailing.

And Dustin will be back, next chapter (hopefully). I don't know about you guys, but I miss his easy going ways.

Anyhow, onto the meat of things! A million times thanks to Rogue Ranger who has been _very_ patient and nice throughout this whole delay, even going so far as to review stories in categories he isn't even familiar with. Thank you, thank you, thank you! I will do my best to _not_ keep you hanging like that again.

I tried to throw in more commas! I can't help the long sentence thing though, the section you edited was in Cam's POV, where I usually use longer sentences to illustrate how active his mind is. I don't really like breaking up the flow, but I did use some of your suggestions (at least one definitely, I remember going back and editing it).

…if the end of this chapter doesn't _quite_ seem as good as the beginning, it is because I may have rushed it a little out of guilt. I wanted you guys to have something.

Until next time.


	30. A Change In Me

Chapter 30

A Change in Me

I don't own Beauty and the Beast, the musical

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* * *

Dustin was pretty sure that one of the basic rules in life was that bubbles were supposed to always lead to happiness.

Like, have there ever been evil bubbles, like _ever?_ The only one he had ever seen was on Spongebob Squarepants (which he could never admit to watching aloud to _anybody_, it didn't matter the circumstances) and even that was more funny than it was scary.

Bubbles were bringers of joy. They were light and happy and had been used on school children forever as cheap forms of entertainment, teachers and helpers blowing and waving and hooking up machines to produce huge bubbles or lots of bubbles for all the kids to run around and pop. The only downside was when you got bubble juice in your eye, but that was _kind've_ your fault whenever that happened. You know the risks that come with attacking the bubble and you should be ready to face the consequences.

This one time when he was little Dustin had gotten separated from his sister when they were at a carnival, which at the time hadn't bothered him so much because the _reason_ he had gotten separated was because he had followed this trail of bubbles that was leading up into the sky. They were part of some show, (or the warm up to some show with clowns or something), anyway, the guy was just testing out this machine that spat out like, a thousand bubbles in ten seconds.

It was one of the most amazing things he had ever laid eyes on.

He couldn't help it (even now, at his mature seventeen years of age he wouldn't be able to help it), he ran through that mass of bubbles, attacking them with his whole body, popping the fluffy goodness left and right like there was no tomorrow. When his sister picked him up at the security tent half an hour later he was still covered in soap, hair plastered to the side of his head and grin a mile wide, not caring if he didn't get to go on any of the rides. He had had his fill of fun for the day.

So it was safe to say that until this point in his life, Dustin had never had but the most positive things to say when regarding bubbles.

Because bubbles equaled happiness.

Except for the odd, unprecedented occasion when bubbles did _not_ equal happiness and in fact _do_ equal a very loud and blaring reminder that intelligence was _not_ one of his strengths.

His kitchen sink looked rabid. It was foaming and angry and bubbling and he didn't know why or even _how_, and he had tried to look up answers on Google but it seemed like nobody else in the world has ever even remotely had the same problem as him. Also, "What do I do with a bubbling kitchen sink?" did not lead to happy search results and should forever be avoided as a topic because apparently some people out there were confused with what a kitchen sink _was_ and even more confused about what the verb "bubbling" meant.

So now he had to quarantine his computer for a week and he _still_ didn't know what was wrong.

He was about to chalk it up to a Lothor attack and call for the team's back up when he opened his dishwasher (he had just run it and he loved to see the dishes in there freshly cleaned state of glory) and he immediately discovered the origin of the bubble mystery. It was an avalanche like no other, bombarding Dustin's face and moving onto the floor to conquer the rest of the kitchen tile by tile. Soon everything on the ground within a five foot radius of his dishwasher was covered with demon bubbles, innocently and maniacally attacking it all with complete disregard to proper bubble conduct.

This was _not_ how bubbles behaved.

Was this a prank? Had someone snuck in and put bubbles in his dishwasher?

No… it didn't smell like usual bubbles, that was more chemical-like and unpleasant (the one real downside to bubbles, aside from when they decided to declare war on your face and subsequently your kitchen), this smelled more like-

Coconut?

He quickly lunged, then slid, then collapsed against the cabinet underneath his sink, whipping it open and rummaging around within its dingy innards for that new bottle of dish cleaner he had bought.

Only it wasn't dish cleaner at all, it was hand soap.

Huh…kind of a weird thing to mix up. So there was the answer to _that_ question. Also, he now knew what happened when you didn't use the proper cleaning solution for its proper job.

The bubbles got angry.

With a sigh he carelessly tossed the soap bottle back into the cabinet and dug for a bucket and a rag. His sister had gone on one of her cleaning rampages and had rearranged most everything in the house, he was still trying to find were his freaking jar of peanut butter was (which _had_ been hiding in his room), so he had no hope whatsoever of finding out were the mop was.

Cleaning away the cleaning supplies. There was a joke in there; he just couldn't figure it out.

Maybe he'd tell it to Cam later, get his input.

Still, that meant he was going to have to go at this the hard way, and if he was lucky, _maybe_ it would only take a couple of hours so he could still get to the store on time to by the appropriate dish cleaner so that the layer of hand soap coating all the plates and cups and silverware wouldn't harden or do something equally bad.

So there went his Wednesday evening, his only free day from training or work or track and he's got to spend it cleaning up this mess.

Well, it could be worse.

Mom could have put carpet in the kitchen (not that she had wanted to).

His clothes were pretty much a lost cause by this point, just like his hair and his face and especially his socks (and they had been the real comfy ones that he specifically reserved for at home usage) so he didn't bother changing. After wiping off his face, and then _re_-wiping off his face because using a soap covered arm to wipe away soap was _not_ the most effective way to do things, Dustin rummaged up a few more old towels and started covering the perimeter of the frothy mess, kind of barricading it in from spreading further.

There was nothing therapeutic (was that the word? Eh, what did it matter, it's his mind, it can mean whatever he wanted it to mean) about shepherding bubbles into bucket. First of all they were mean (probably because they had been misused and abused and wanted him to know they were not at all pleased by that) and seemed to have a tendency to aim themselves more for his eyes than his actual cleaning pail. It was like an evil little game for them, every so often they would build up and he would lose control and his face (like when he first opened the dishwasher) would become the target of a bubble rage kamikaze attack. By the time he finished cleaning off the floor of one side of his kitchen's island he had emptied the bucket five times, had been face-attacked four, and his eyes were stinging so badly he just kind've wanted to huddle into a ball and give into his desire to cry.

No, he was a Power Ranger, and Power Rangers did not surrender to bubble messes.

No matter how ruthless their actions against his person might be.

He didn't fully register that there was another person in the room until they were hovering right behind him, staring at the viscous bubbles with intense fascination. Or what he assumed was intense fascination, because he couldn't really see anything right now so he was mostly just filling in the blanks as best he could.

"Dude, what happened?"

Hunter, got it, it was Hunter the cool guy.

Who had now just witnessed Dustin be incredibly _not_ cool.

The mechanic shrugged sheepishly, keeping his face turned away from the blond as he herded some more foam into his bucket. "I confused dish soap with hand soap."

Just kill him now.

Hunter let out a low whistle, still taking in the waves of churning white. "I see that did not end well."

"Nope," Dustin replied, scrunching his eyes closed as was is attacked yet again by the bubble brigade. Hands still slick from cleaning, he lost his grip on the bucket and it clattered to the ground while he reminded his hands that the _last_ thing they needed to do was go anywhere near his face. He exhaled sharply, trying to figure out if there was a clean spot on his shoulder left when Hunter's hand (or he hoped it was Hunter because he was the only other person in the room and if it was actually someone else he was a _really_ bad ninja) slid around his back and lightly gripped the base of his neck, and a kind of warm material was gently pressed against his eyes, wiping away the remaining soap.

When the material was pulled away Dustin risked opening his eyes, only to find that the crimson ranger was gone. He blinked again, heat still welling up behind his eyes, and he turned his face away from the bubbles, attempting to…give his eyes some breathing room?

Whatever, he was getting sick of looking at this mess.

Hunter reappeared quickly, clean, dry towel in hand, and he gave it over to Dustin so that he could fix his hands-can't-get-near-face problem. Dustin gave a spastic wave to show his thanks, and he was about to ask what Hunter had used earlier when the blond nodded his head towards a piece of black material Dustin hadn't seen earlier that was hanging over the edge of the island. It looked like one of the over shirts he had seen Hunter wear from time to time, and he instantly felt guilty for ruining (because at the rate these bubbles were going it _had_ to be ruined) his friend's shirt.

Hunter cut him off before he can say anything about it.

"Don't sweat it Dustin."

The yellow ranger snapped his mouth closed, looking away not-completely relieved.

The tall thunder brother was gone before he could find a way to express this, leaving him staring blankly at an empty space, and just as suddenly as he disappeared, he was back again, second bucket, rag, and two sets of rubber gloves in his hand.

Rubber gloves…yeah, that would probably make this a lot easier.

It would sure make him hate his hands less.

He slipped his gloves on awkwardly (he always confused which one should go where and it never failed that no matter what he did he always put them on the wrong hands first) and Hunter moved to the other side of the island, attacking the sea of bubbles so that they would meet in the middle.

Dustin paused again and blinked in confusion, something…there was something-

Oh, that was it.

He cleared his throat hesitantly while he restarted his task, hand slowly swiping at his daemon bubbles.

"Hey uh…why are you here?"

Not that he didn't mind Hunter being here, especially him being here and helping him clean up the mess he had made, not that he wouldn't have hated him being here if he _wasn't_ helping him, even if he had chosen to just sit at the kitchen table making snappy comments Dustin would have appreciated his company (even if that would make him cry a little on the inside, and possibly the outside), but it was just-

He came here for something right?

A thought hit Dustin, freezing him in place, and his breath caught in his throat and his vision got a little blurry (or _blurrier_) and he couldn,'t help but get the horrible feeling that-

What if he _knew_? What if he knew about his dirty little secret? What if he got suspicious of him and Tori and Blake all sneaking around so he followed them that one time they went to the beach and saw the whole thing happen in its horrifying glory? Or what if he thought that his brother was keeping something from him so he went up to him and was all _"What's up that I don't know about?"_ and Blake was all _"I will carry this secret to my grave"_ and then there would be mucho tension between them and it would be _his_ fault and Hunter would know that his brother was super stubborn and he'd know that Tori would side with Blake so he went to the weakest link on the team and was going to lean on Dustin until he broke all bad-cop/super-bad-cop style.

Dustin didn't want to be _interrogated_. He couldn't lie, he sucked _so_ bad at it. If there was a championship for lying and they gave out awards and metals and stuff he wouldn't even get a participation award because his lying would be so monumentally suckish that they couldn't even classify it as lying.

Unaware of his little meltdown (or completely aware of it because it was all apart of his evil little plan), Hunter continued on the conversation, happily cleaning and being super helpful.

"I need your expertise."

Which was his way of saying _"I need your expertise because you have caused my brother to deceive me and I want to make sure that can never happen again ever"_.

Could rangers kill each other?

Dustin really, _really_ hoped not.

He coughed quietly to clear his throat from the guilt and anger that had built up there (okay, so it was more like spit and whatever else built up in throats but that was not as poetic) and he tried to keep his voice natural when he replied, "On what?"

Except his voice cracked in a very unmanly way, and he went back to wishing that he could go back in time where his biggest problem was a dishwasher full of angry bubbles.

Hunter chose not to comment on the crack (he tended to go a little easier on him and Cam than he did everyone else, why, Dustin didn't know and he didn't ever question it).

"I want to get Cam a gift, and I figured, since you know him best, I should ask you about it."

…_what?_

Cam and…what?

That didn't have anything to do with the-

He wasn't here about the….?

…

…why did he want to give Cam a gift?

And then the rest of that statement hit Dustin and he was slightly overwhelmed by the fact that the crimson ranger thought he knew Cam the best and he took a moment to let that make him feel all warm and fuzzy on the inside. This was much better then being interrogated to death.

Panic gone and in a superbly better mood, Dustin gave into his curiosity, scrubbing at his floor with renewed energy.

"What do you want to give him a gift for?"

Was it Cam's birthday? He knew that the tech's birthday came before all of theirs and it was sometime in the winter, or was it the fall? It was during-

Holy crap his birthday was less than a week from now. November first, and Dustin knew it was November first because Cam always complained about seeing all the Halloween after-party stragglers walking home in their cheap/sleazy/distasteful/other-stuff-Cam-hates costumes.

How could Dustin have forgotten that? He had written it down on like eight different calendars and circled it and committed (or _thought _he had committed it) to memory.

_Gahh_, stupid self, being all afraid of water and making brothers deceive other brothers and forgetting friend's birthdays through-

Good mood gone, Dustin berated himself, swiping at some stray bubbles in aggravation.

Hunter, of all people, remembered Cam's birthday before he did and he didn't spend _nearly_ as much time with the green ranger as Dustin had.

The yellow ranger managed to get that far on his mental tirade when Hunter interrupted him, giving a completely bizarre answer that Dustin didn't really know what to do with.

Though he did take mild relief in the fact that Hunter didn't remember that thing he was supposed to remember.

"I'm trying to ask Cam out," the crimson ranger admitted, surprising Dustin so much with the simplicity of his statement that he almost wanted to remind Hunter about Cam's birthday, but then he got the idea that the asking out might be _for_ the birthday.

…oh

Well, maybe if he was really nice Hunter would invite him too.

He could probably casually drop that into his answer.

Dustin felt a smile spreading across his face, thinking of all the super sweet things they could suck Cam into doing. "Well why don't you just ask him, that usually works for me," he replied, voice full of cheer. "Like, he might drag his feet a little at first but usually he's pretty good natured about that kind of thing, but…oh, he's been a little grumpy lately so you probably still want to get him that present." He blinked slowly, realizing he left something out. "Hey, uh, can I come?"

Because he did not want to miss out on Happy Birthday Cam times. Happy birthday Cam times should be celebrated with everyone, and not just Hunter.

Hunter didn't immediately respond, which worried Dustin because he didn't actually think he would say no. What if it was really exclusive, what if he could only score one other ticket to this super secret thing and he didn't want Dustin to feel bad and-

"Not…" Hunter began suddenly, breaking Dustin out of his thoughts. "There's so many things wrong with…" he trailed off and sighed, a particular sigh that Dustin knew from many a study session is followed by a sad head shake. "I want to ask Cam on a date."

…

…_what?_

It was like…an error message or something, in his head.

_Error, error, does not compute._

What did he mean by ask on a date?

"…What?" he asked, titling his head off to the side as though his kitchen ceiling could reveal the answer he was so desperately looking for.

"A date," Hunter repeated, sounding oddly patient. "You do know what a date is right?"

Of course he knew what a date was; he used to watch TV _all_ the time before he went to the Wind Academy. He'd seen plenty of different examples of good dates and bad dates and the _really_ bad dates where the editors went back and added thought bubbles that said things like "what a blonde" or "he's so dumb" and stuff like that.

Yeah…TV might have scared him away from dating.

Still, he was beginning to think that Hunter might be a little confused on how the whole process worked.

"Yeah," he explained, finally getting to be the one to teach something for a change. "You take a girl to the movies or to dinner or bowling or something like that, and then you drive her home and kiss her."

Actually that was just a basic outline on what happened on _most_ dates. As he said before, some of them did not go _nearly_ that well. There was a quiet pause from Hunter's side of the kitchen and Dustin can hear him grunt in exertion, probably his first bubble attack (the first one was the worse).

Another pause (cleaning away the shame) and then Hunter got back to him, coughing quietly. "Or a guy."

The confusion was back (was it ever really gone?) and Dustin once more turned to his ceiling for answers, begging it to break it's silence and divulge the secrets of thunderhood he was sure it probably knew. Maybe he should call Blake; he could probably explain it to him.

"_Or a guy…"_

It took a few seconds for Dustin to figure out a plausible way for Hunter's comment to kind of fit into what he had just said, and his head began to hurt from all the contradictions.

"But then it wouldn't be a date," he marveled, thinking back to all the TV shows and soaps he had seen his sister watch, and while they _did_ go through a multitude of different people (this one guy went from a blond, to a redhead, to a brunette, to back to the same blonde again all within one week, which was pretty amazing because Dustin was pretty sure they were still brewing the same pot of coffee during all those episodes), he definitely knew, for a fact, that there had to be a boy and a girl.

It was like, basic science.

Except that Hunter didn't like the idea of basic science (which would make him a very bad match for Cam, were Cam a girl, because appreciation for like, the rules of the universe were one of Cam's necessities, or Dustin assumed they were because Cam seemed like that kind of guy (guy, clearly not a girl)) so he countered his argument with a simple, "Yes, it would."

If Dustin had _thought_ his head was hurting earlier it was nothing compared to where it was now, and he had to put down his bucket and rag just so he could lean against the counter long enough for the spinning to stop. No, no it wouldn't, he knew this, it was an undeniable fact. Why would they put it on all the shows and books and movies if it was a lie? What, did the big media head guys just get together one day and decide they were going to get a laugh on the expense of the poor, not-so-bright guys that got a majority of their social learning through their outlets? Huh?

What if Dustin had got it wrong this entire time? What if guys were only supposed to date guys and girls were supposed to date girls?

But then…where would the babies come from? There had to be a guy and girl for that too right? What if that was another thing they had all lied about?

Dustin scrubbed at his head, confused and sad and betrayed, re-soaping his face once anew. He growled, throwing off his gloves and shoving his arms against his chest, curling himself into a ball.

He couldn't focus on both things at once.

…Wait, TV wasn't the only place he had gotten his info.

He perked up a little, enough to lift his head. "My sister says guys are only supposed to date girls."

And his sister, while not his biggest fan, would never lie to him. Like, ever. Even when his feelings were at stake she had always been brutally (and he meant _brutally_) honest.

Well, that should put an end to _that_ conversation. He should start looking for his gloves again.

But Hunter, being Hunter, was by no means done. "Dustin, do you know what the word 'gay' means?"

…or Dustin had _thought_ he wasn't done, but apparently they were going to change the subject now.

Right, whatever.

He would let Hunter try to salvage his pride a little and play along with it, though he would have to give Cam a head's up later so he could prepare a power point for Hunter to show him the error of his ways. The green ranger had already prepared several different ones for Dustin before, and they were actually quite entertaining as well as informative. Not that it was surprising that Cam was a pro with the slide show.

Huh, catchy.

Smiling brightly (now that _that_ confusing conversation was finally over he could get back to work) he began to explain.

"Yeah, it means lame or happy." But more often than not it meant lame. Dustin hadn't even _known_ it could mean happy to until Tori had told him. "The guys at school call me that sometimes but I don't really know which definition they mean. I've never worked up the nerve to ask them." He hoped it was the happy one, not that he was ever really happy at school; he just hadn't thought he had done something that warranted being lame. "Is that right?" he asked, trying to be polite.

Hunter hesitated before replying (hey, he was the one who switched the subject; he should be getting with program).

"…no," he answered, sounding confused (well that made two of them). "Well, yes, it means that, but it also means that you like guys."

So there was a hidden third definition?

_Huh_…

Dustin would think a secret definition would be a little less…lame. Like, more exclusive, or something.

"So everybody's gay?" he asked, scratching the side of his head.

Hunter's voice sounded startled whenever he replied.

"What?"

"Well," Dustin began, rubbing his chin thoughtfully, "I don't think there're that many people out there who don't like guys."

In fact, the only person he could really think of who _didn't_ like guys was Lothor, but he didn't count because he pretty much hated everybody.

The head shaking sigh was back.

"No, not like…" Hunter sighed again, and Dustin almost told him to stop cleaning because he didn't want to risk him passing out and choking to death on bubbles. "It's when you _really_-like guys."

_Really_-like?

Oh, like, _like_-like, but with Hunter being Hunter he couldn't just come out and say that because he would be deducted like, eighty cool points or something. Oh the struggles of being the mysterious guy.

Dustin suddenly felt very stupid, because _like_-liking would cut out all the guys from the formula, so no wonder Hunter was kind of despairing, except that really didn't answer why Hunter wanted to ask out Cam.

Dustin put his gloves down again, tapping his fingers impatiently against his knees.

He would just start with what he knew he _knew_ and go from there.

"…so," he asked after clearing his throat hesitantly, "all girls are gay?"

Man, he _never_ heard a girl called that before.

It was probably because everyone else in the world found the secret definition just as stupid as he did.

"No it's-" geez Hunter, couldn't you let a guy just have a win for once? "When a guy finds other guys sexually attractive."

A few minutes later, Dustin was still blinking stupidly at his kitchen cabinets, trying to mash together the pieces of a puzzle that clearly did not belong together.

Desperate for an answer that made sense, Dustin glared in Hunter's general direction, mentally shaking a fist. "…you're playing a joke on me, aren't you?"

That had to be it, this was all some elaborate-

_Gah_, that wasn't cool! Hunter really _had_ remembered Cam's birthday, but instead of just saying that he had to make up _this_ mess and-

Dustin felt betrayed.

Betrayed and a little dirty.

But Hunter didn't sound all that apologetic when he called him out, instead he sounded… disbelieving.

Oh, so he didn't feel like giving up his fun yet.

"You've never heard of this?" he asked, sounding honestly bothered by this, and Dustin had to fight not to jump over his island and punch the blond in the face, because while Dustin was game for a joke at his expense (he wasn't a _complete_ party pooper), enough was _enough_. He had thought Hunter knew that by now. He bit back his anger, trying to go for a disappointed approach (he always felt ten times worse whenever Sensei was disappointed as to whenever he was mad).

"I'm going to believe you and then I'm going to go ask Shane about it and he's going to look at me like I'm crazy. Well, not today mister," he lectured, wagging his finger even though the other ranger couldn't see it, and he could hear Hunter putting down his bucket with a sigh.

Stupid sigh, stupid Hunter.

"Dustin, this is a real thing," he urged, but Dustin shook his head thoroughly.

"I probably would have noticed something like that." Sure, he wasn't the most observant of guys but guys like, making out with other guys was something that was really hard to miss. The closest he'd ever seen to anything like that was brotherly love, and he was _pretty_ sure that wasn't what Hunter was talking about.

And there was no way he was going to ask him if there was any funny business going on between him and Blake. Partly because if he said yes, Dustin doesn't want to be the one to tell Tori.

And it would be gross.

He didn't notice the footsteps (again, because he was too busy glaring at his bubble mess, deep in thought) and suddenly Hunter's hand was on his shoulder. Dustin turns quickly to see the crimson ranger crouched beside him, staring at him earnestly.

"Dustin," he said, looking him dead in the eye. "_I_ like guys."

There a moment where Dustin didn't want to believe him, where this…idea, this huge thing is just too much for Dustin to understand and he just wanted to-

But that kind of…you couldn't fake honesty like that. Dustin didn't…uh, if it were Shane he would know in an instant but…well, ever since the whole Toxipod island thing he and Hunter had kind of bonded and he wouldn't-

He wouldn't take a joke this far would he? Not anymore.

That meant…

Hunter _like_-liked guys.

…he, Dustin's brain went numb, and he couldn't really think about how that made him feel.

But his mouth, ever the trouper, carried on without him, and he blinked at Hunter slowly.

"You're gay?"

The crimson ranger visibly relaxed (it was nice to know he wasn't the only one bothered by the trust issue) but his eyes remained steady. "I'm bi."

"What?" Dustin exclaimed, rubbing the side of his head furiously, "You said-"

Hunter interrupted him before he could get too far. "I _also_ like girls."

What?

"Gay guys can't like girls?"

His head hurt.

"No," Hunter answered, reaching out to place a comforting hand on his shoulder, "it's the definition-"

"I'm _so_ confused," Dustin confessed, and Hunter gave him a pitying look, one he often gave him during their tutoring sessions. He slowed down, backtracking so that he can explain it better.

"Look," Hunter began, making sure he had Dustin's full attention, "if a guy only likes other guys, he's gay." He paused to make sure it computed and Dustin nodded, allowing him to move on. "If he likes guys _and_ girls, he's bi."

…oh…okay

"I guess that makes sense," Dustin admitted, running a hand through his hair.

If a guy only liked guys, he was gay, if he liked guys _and_ girls he wasn't gay and…wait.

Wait, wait, wait, wait, _wait_.

"…holy crap…" he whispered, eyes widening in sudden realization.

That meant…if there was a word for it that meant…guys could like _other_ guys, like, _really_ like, like date _them_, instead of girls? Instead of mean, angry, soul crushing females?

"I didn't even know that was an option!" he exclaimed, grabbing the sides of his head because his mind had been thoroughly blown. "If I had known that I would have…"

He trailed off, unsure how to continue, because he wasn't really sure _what_ he would have done but he didn't know, _he didn't know_, and why hadn't anyone told him? He had thought he was going to grow old and die all alone.

Hunter looked at him with that look Cam usually got when he _really _wanted to figure out the answer to some riddle or puzzle or code or something and nothing was going to stop him from doing it. Unused to it being aimed at _him_, Dustin squirmed under the stare, fidgeting slightly.

"You would have… what?" Hunter asked, incredibly enthralled, and Dustin wished he could just think of a way to end this conversation so he could go talk to Shane or Cam about this whole gay thing.

"…nothing," he mumbled, edging away from Hunter slowly, but the crimson ranger just followed him (see, totally like Cam) moving his other arm so that he had a hold of both of Dustin's shoulders.

The yellow ranger gulped, trying not to look at intimidated as he felt.

It was like a mouse trapped by a cat.

"Dustin," Hunter asked, patient and quiet and completely serious and so different from any other time he was with Dustin that it scared him a little. "Do you like guys?"

…had he asked him that when he first got here Dustin would have said yes, no problem. He would have said yes and meant it because he hadn't known that-

He hadn't known he was allowed to romance a guy.

Not that he was really the romancing type, he would probably be the roman_cee_ as opposed to the roman_cer_ but that didn't matter because-

Mind buzzing, he tried to pull away from Hunter again (feebly, more for appearances sake then anything else but it made him feel _a little_ better).

"I…" he mumbled, heat rising to his face. It was like school, he didn't know the answer and it was killing him.

"Girls are mean," he settled on, staring at the bubbles.

The bubbles may be evil but the bubbles didn't judge.

Hunter's voice was still serious (Dustin just…he couldn't look at him) whenever he replied.

"Just because you've had bad experiences with girls doesn't mean you're gay Dustin."

But what if you never, never, never want to be around them…ever (except for Tori, and Kelly, but he never had any sudden urges to kiss them _either_).

"But…" Dustin mumbled, looking up at Hunter timidly. "I like _you_ guys."

And he _did_, he really did like them, they were his family, and there weren't any other people in the world he would ever want to spend time with. He would do anything for them (_anything_, he meant it) and if something bad ever happened to them…if one of them ever…got bored of him and left…or if they got hurt…it would just kill him.

Anything, if there had been anything…any…feelings, he couldn't-

Nothing, he'd never let anything get in the way that could come between him and his friends because-

If…what if they didn't like him?

Like, _like_ him- like him.

Back outside his head Hunter was still talking, voice soothing but firm.

"That doesn't make you gay either."

Yeah he being lame or being happy or _really_ liking other guys made you gay but what…?

Million dollar question, he had to ask it.

He cleared his throat quietly, working up the nerve to ask what he really needed to ask. "Well, how do you know if you're attracted to…to a guy?"

There was a bit of a smile, and Dustin immediately relaxed. "Usually you have these urges to make out with them."

He _knew _that but-

"I've never…" he began, trying to phrase it right. "I…don't really want to make out with anyone." Mostly because no one ever seemed to want to make out with _him_. "Or, if I did I want it to be…to be you guys but I couldn't…"

_I couldn't ruin everything._

There was a painful pause, air heavy or pulsing or whatever air got like when something monumental was about to happen and Dustin finally got the courage to stare Hunter dead in the eye.

"…you like guys?"

The crimson ranger nodded at the quiet question, confident in what he was. "That's what I said."

How could he…he wanted to-

Could he even ask, was that even allowed?

Why couldn't he have psychic powers and be able to tell Hunter all of this with his mind?

He was hesitant, and scared, scared about everything (he hated change, it was so…different) and scared about possible punches that could be thrown to his face but he had come this far and how could he stop now and-

"Could you…" he asked, trailing off, not entirely sure how but Hunter seemed to get it, to understand what he wanted because in the next second the blonde's lips were against his, and Dustin had to remind himself that on top of everything else kisses were supposed to be done with your eyes closed.

There was a million different things running through his mind and he could barely give any thought to any of them because he was trying so hard to focus on what was going on _outside_ his head. There was a hand in his hair and another on his back and it felt really good especially when _that_ spot is caressed and-

Hunter's lips were soft, not that that should be a surprise because they were lips and they were _supposed _to be soft (Dustin's were soft, why should Hunter's be any exception?) and they were kind of like two of the _best_ _pillows_ _ever, _they were soft and Dustin should really be getting off how soft they were because they were moving and that felt even better than the head touching thing and-

Hunter pulled back and Dustin was gasping, finally realizing that he hadn't been breathing during that whole exchange. His head was still reeling but his voice begged for more, because that had felt _so_ good and why couldn't he have figured this gay thing out sooner?

"Can…" he gasped, begging with his eyes, "can we…?"

"Do it again?" Hunter asked, smirk firmly in place, and something within Dustin flared at the sight (which was weird because that had never happened before and Hunter smirked like, eighteen times a day), but he didn't get a chance to ask about it because Hunter was immediately on him again, pressing him into the counter and moving his lips in a…Dustin didn't know how to describe it he' never-

There's a…wet!

He jumped a bit, startled, and Hunter broke away long enough (and Dustin may or may not have whined when it happened) but then he figured out it was just so he could breath and chuckle (stupid breathing…and chuckling) and then he comforted the yellow ranger with a small peck before getting onto that wet-

Tongue, Dustin finally realized, sliding across his bottom lip and he didn't know what to do (were his lips tasty? What if lips were _really_ tasty and he was missing out) so he opened up his mouth so he could try it and suddenly Hunter's tongue was with his tongue and _holy-goodness-that-was-so-much-better._

There was a voice in the back of his mind that was telling him that this should be gross but he drowned it out with some sweet mood music (he wasn't entirely sure what it sounded like because he usually switched the channel when he got to that part so he just kind of wings it) and churning chaos that now his mind was handling all these new sensations.

Just as he was starting to get the flow of things Hunter pulled back, making a wave of disappointment wash over him, and just as Dustin was about to ask for more (Hunter was really nice about it the first time) the blond pulled him up off the ground, switching their positions so that they were standing with Dustin's back to the counter, and before the curly haired teen got a chance to ask why Hunter started doing this thing to his neck that felt _really_ awesome. Seriously, Dustin had no idea what was going on down there, but it _almost_ felt better than that feeling he got whenever he wins a race. It was warm and a little wet and for some odd reason he kept feeling hot but he knew they weren't doing that much-

Hunter's hands were on his hips, one of them sliding under his shirt and rubbing against his abs in this painfully slow way and his face felt hot and he felt a little bad because he didn't want to leave Hunter hanging because he wasn't really doing anything so he slid a hand under _his_ shirt so that he could feel his back, all muscly and smooth and _awesome_ and-

He almost didn't notice with everything that was going on, Hunter's leg slowly slide up between his, closing the gap between them and _everything _was touching, their legs and their chest and their arms and he was so close and-

Hunter shifted, or something shifted and brushed against Dustin's…private place and there was this… he didn't know if he should run (because his teacher had said you shouldn't let anyone touch you there) but it felt _so_ good, hot and sparking and friction and he had almost gotten used to it maybe but then the leg really moved and Dustin saw sparks behind his eyes and-

He was across the room in an instant, huddling in a puddle of bubbles on the other side of the island, freaking out (because he had known it was going to be good but he hadn't thought it was going to be _that_ good) and while his…he went through puberty, he knew the…the lay of the land but he didn't think-

The whole idea of somebody _else_ doing that to him sort of freaked him out. Hence, the sudden retreat.

"Stay…you stay over…" he tried to make out between gulps of air, and he tried to stop the waves of humiliation that seemed to roll over him with merciless glee.

He should run now. Yes, it was probably running time.

_Gah_…Hunter would never-

He just _barely_ heard the quiet sigh coming from the other side of the room over all the yelling that was going on inside his head. He quieted it down so he could listen to Hunter's declaration of hatred and the most assured challenge of fight to the death or something.

Dustin was pretty sure that was what happened when you didn't hold up your end of the deal.

Hunter didn't come closer (which was good) and he didn't start throwing lightning Dustin's way (which was better). He just kind of reverted to what they were doing before the super-fun-make-out-time. The only sign that they even just _had_ super-fun-make-out-time was in the slightly breathless tone the crimson ranger tried to calm him with.

"That's perfectly normal Dustin."

What was normal? The kissing part, or the running part? Was it the running part, because that didn't seem like something that happened all that often…ever. Like, that wasn't even from TV or movies, that was just from using his eyes whenever he went places.

People made out, and then they stopped, usually when they both agreed on it and not when one of them ran away like a little ninny.

He didn't like being a ninny.

Hunter kept talking, completely recovered from their _thing_ and sounding positive for a guy who just didn't…get some. Yeah, that was the term.

Dustin had often wondered what the "some" was.

"So, here's the good news," the blond began, happy tone contagious enough that even Dustin had to smile a little, even if he still refused to peak his head over the counter. "You're definitely attracted to guys."

But what if-

The question in his head spilled over into his mouth, blurting out unnecessarily loud, "What if it's just you?"

It probably wasn't a good question for his ego, because Hunter and Shane were pretty much duking it out all the time as it was and Dustin didn't want to give the crimson ranger any unnecessary ammunition, but he really did need to ask.

Thankfully Hunter let it slide, choosing to focus more on him. "Do you think it's just me?"

…did he?

Did…was Hunter the _only_ guy, ever, that he would ever want to…

it…

No. He wasn't.

Dustin… it wasn't like he wanted to…to look at strangers and be like "yeah, I'd make out with him" but…if…if…

He didn't want to think it, or say it, or…_imagine_ it because it was…it was just so _huge_ and so-

This was supposed to be his off day, he wasn't _supposed_ to have to think about all this hard stuff now, it was too-

But he couldn't…if…he's denied things…a lot, it was what he did. If something was just so horribly _bad_ that he couldn't approach it and he couldn't _change_ it or fix it or make it better he just thought beyond it, or dressed it up in his head or just ignored it altogether and it _kind_ of made it better, but it didn't _really_ make it better, because it was still there. It was still bad but his mind was just beyond it, but this thing was just so _big_ and-

He…

If…Shane…or Cam…he'd…if they'd…if either one of them…he…

…

He _liked_ them. He _really_ liked them. _Liked_-liked, and… he would-

_One thing at a time Dustin_.

No, Hunter was not the exception.

"…no," he whispered finally, almost to himself but Hunter still caught it. The blond gave him a moment to let it all sink in (though all that could be sunk had been sank for the day, and Dustin wasn't sure he could handle too terribly much more).

He liked boys.

A silent truce was made, and Hunter finally surrendered his old spot and made his way back beside Dustin, huddling down amidst the soapy waves.

"Okay," he began, cheerful and confident, "so there's definitely a physical attraction."

The sparky thing, yes, yes it was there.

"Now the second question is if there's an emotional one?"

Dustin actually understood what he meant, but Hunter continued on anyway, clarifying because he was a good teacher like that.

"Is there anyone who…makes you feel all warm inside?"

Dustin furrowed his brows, _now_ slightly confused. "Define warm."

He thought they covered the getting hot and sparky thing with the physical attraction, he didn't think there was any other way to get warm inside.

Hunter dutifully filled him in.

"Who do you want to spend time with most?" He asked, and Dustin nodded, finally getting it.

Playfully, with a crooked smile, Hunter added, "And subsequently wouldn't mind getting naked with."

Naked…with?

Dustin's mind kind of shuddered to a halt there, jerking and spinning and he felt his face light up like the Fourth of July when his imagination thought it would be funny to picture Hunter without his clothes on and-

What would two naked people even do anyway? Wouldn't that get uncomfortable?

He shoved his face into his hands as he gave an awkward cough, Hunter pat him on the back comfortingly in response, letting loose a small chuckle he just couldn't help.

"Don't worry; you'll get there in time."

"…I like you," Dustin admitted, because he did. He did like hanging out with Hunter, he didn't make him feel stupid (he actually made him feel cool) and once you got past the brooding he was really funny and nice.

Also, Dustin liked kissing him a lot…and he could _quite_ possibly like kissing Dustin back. The yellow ranger had been himself too long to be able to hope such a thing, but the fact that Hunter's still stuck around-

That had to mean something.

…wait

There was this nagging feeling in the back of Dustin's head, there was something important, something he missed, something he _should_ be remembering right now but he just couldn't-

Wait.

_Cam_.

The whole reason Hunter and Dustin had even first started talking about this whole mess was because Hunter had wanted to ask Cam out, and while there was a lot of things Dustin should be thinking about that concerned Hunter (like, why was he making out with Dustin if he wanted Cam and did that only mean he did it to help or was he a pimp or-) but his brain immediately overrode all those things because did that mean Cam…?

The question tumbled out, no grace, no lead in, no nothing. "Cam likes guys?"

He staring at Hunter intently, focus completely on him, and he was itching to grip his shoulders, to shake him, but his body remained frozen, _needing_ this answer.

Hunter picked up on it, hesitating only a little before saying, "Yes."

…_yes._

Cam…Cam liked-

His heart felt all…his chest…there was a warm feeling (Hunter was not joking it was really there) and Dustin-

He never felt happier.

There was nothing, he didn't know why-he didn't know-

_Cam likes guys_

And Dustin just happened to be a guy, he _just happened_ to be a guy who also liked other guys and-

Hunter.

…_Hunter_.

The brunette's mind slowly boiled down to a quiet echo, repeating the name over and over again until it overcame the warm feeling and mixed his stomach back into a knotted mess.

It wasn't a pleasant fact, but he couldn't deny it, not when it concerned his team.

Hunter came first.

Hunter wanted Cam first, which meant that maybe Cam wanted Hunter first and even though Dustin hadn't _known-_

_Gah_, why did Hunter have to kiss him? Why did he have to talk to him and do stupid things like making him understand and opening his eyes to-

Why did he have to make him feel so good inside and then just as easily make him feel like the most terrible human being that had ever walked the planet?

Dustin thought he hadn't hoped, but clearly his stupid subconscious _had_ because he was feeling all kinds of depressed. He had liked Hunter and he liked Cam and he thought Hunter liked _him_ but it was a fact he liked _Cam_ and-

_Hah_…if Cam liked both of them they could just be one big happy trio. He'd seen Three's Company, he knew it worked.

…sometimes.

…

And then it _really_ hit him.

"…_dude_," he mumbled, eyes wide at the sudden realization, "that's perfect."

Hunter (who had been sitting by quietly watching his face go from happy to sad to thoughtful to enlightened) perked up at his vocalizations, happy for any kind of communication.

"What?"

Well, who was Dustin to leave him hanging?

"I like you _and_ I like Cam." Dustin explained, almost giddy (a manly giddy of manliness) and he looked at Hunter eagerly, "And clearly you like Cam and you…wait, do you like-"

Because clearly a lot of this was based on the assumption that if Hunter was down with making out with him he might actually like _him_ a little and-

The lips were back again, and he almost kept talking but the hand was back in his hair so he just sighed into it, enjoying the attention.

Hunter pulled back slowly, eyes intent, and Dustin nodded slowly.

"…yeah, so you like me." That was _awesome_. "So, uh, if Cam likes both of us we could all totally date."

Hunter blinked at him slowly, trying to make sense of what he had just heard while simultaneously trying to cover it up. He started up again slowly, still gently stroking Dustin's hair.

"…I don't think you understand how dating works."

Oh no, no, not this guy. See, he _thought_ he didn't know how dating worked, or, he thought he _did_ know, and then Hunter filled him in with crazy things that actually weren't that crazy, so why should this be any different?

He didn't back down, puffing up his chest slightly as he defended his argument. "No way man, you already like, blew my mind today," blew it, blown it, it was gone, "and from what I've gathered…we're not normal people right? Most people don't train so they can be better at fighting evil space ninjas, so why should we date like normal not-fighters of evil space ninjas?"

Yeah, suck on that logic popsicle why don't yah?

He almost thought that Hunter was going to disagree with him, to insist that his way was right and Dustin was still way wrong, but instead he tilted his head and looked off to the side thoughtfully, and Dustin just knew that he'd won.

"…I see no faults with this argument."

Because there weren't any, his plan was faultless.

"See, see, it's awesome!" Dustin shouted, jumping up enthusiastically and pumping his fist into the air. "Now all we have to do is go convince Cam that there is no way he can deny our totally hot studliness."

He couldn't, there was no way this wouldn't work. Dustin already knew from past experience that if you tag-teamed Cam victory was almost assuredly yours (as long as it didn't involve any of his computers/the zords/his uniform/…okay, so there were a _few_ things he stood up against).

Excited and happy and delighted and a million other things, Dustin ran about the kitchen, picking up all of the soaking towels and throwing them carelessly in the general direction of the sink before he dashed out of the room to grab his keys. He was back in the kitchen in less than ten seconds (new record without streaking) and sliding towards his table in two, grabbing up his cell phone and wallet and quickly making his way towards the door.

Once his hand hit the doorknob he paused, glancing over his shoulder at the amused Hunter who still stood beside the island.

"Hey," he asked, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Does this mean you're my boyfriend now?"

The kiss Hunter gave him in response pretty much answered that question, and soon they were on their way, preparing to storm Ninja Ops.

Yeah, Cam didn't know what he was in for.

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Endnotes:

Happy early Christmas everyone, I'm pretty sure this is the longest chapter yet since number one.

As per usual I would like to give thanks to those of you that reviewed last chapter, MidnightMoonWarrior, Rogue Ranger (Dustin chapter, just for you), and ValkyrieNyght, all of your feedback is always appreciated.

Dear God ValkyrieNyght, how I have missed you. No one else can quite give me a swift kick in the pants so thoroughly while still making me smile. Seriously, feel free to vent all you want, I have nothing but support for it because that means A) my story provokes some kind of feeling that is not indifference and you feel the need to express it, and B) you're legitimately trying to make me do better. Both of these are incredibly awesome.

Of course you are correct, on many accounts, and I feel I might have been writing this story so long that I might have lost track of the actual goal (aside from entertainment value).

I'm afraid that in an attempt to get myself out of my funk and to pull this story off of the sidelines, I _might_ (and by might, I mean definitely) have indulged myself a little too much with chapter 29. Yes…it was excessive Cam angst (I can own up to that) and you are right. I have abused my favorite character (super favorite, number one, Cam is the badass in my book), I have been so focused on the emotions aspect that I've kind've ruined him.

I will fix it, pinky swear.

However, I do feel some obligation to defend my work, so here goes nothing. In my opinion, the easier part of what they have to do is the actual world saving (at least as far as this stories concerned). Given the choice, I would much rather go off and fight someone then actually sit down and talk about what makes me tick. Something like love (which is what I'm trying to get to, eventually) is a big commitment, total trust, total surrender. I'm going off of what my mom and dad have (being that they are the only close example I have). From what I've observed, it isn't just you being with another person, it's…I can't really phrase it without sounding horribly cliché, but it's like that person is a part of you, and you are a part of them.

Building zords, saving the world, easy, they have complete control of their actions and if they ever come up short they _know_ what they need to do to get better. If some one doesn't want you in a relationship, how are you supposed to respond to that? "Give me a few weeks, I'll just go dust off my personality a little bit and you can work on your boundary issues and everything should just be gravy."

No..nuh-uh, does not work.

So…that's my bit. It's not the greatest of excuses, but there it is.

…I can't believe I actually lost sight of the saving the world thing.

My bad.

And parenthesis, yes, those, well…I was a computer science major for a little while (for a very little while, like, I barely know anything) and one of the few things I picked up was coding in Java, which involved a lot of ((coding) within coding). So…yes…I kind of got used to that.

…I forgot that wasn't a normal thing most people see.

Again, my bad.

Before I forget, no, I had no idea this was going to be this long. I had no idea that you could say so much or so little in just a thousand words and I had no idea what my writing style was. I pretty much spent the first three chapters staring at my computer screen trying to figure out how to actually _start_ a chapter. This whole ordeal has been a learning experience for me, and hopefully all future epics will be able to learn from this one's mistakes.

So…chapter?

Yes, onto the chapter.

I was trying to figure out what I was doing for this chapter when I finally decided enough was enough. It was chapter 30, I had faffed around and created enough backstory/filler/whatever I want to call it and the patient souls who have stayed this long deserve a little action.

And a little action you did get, though you must forgive me, this was my very first make out scene.

To those of you who love Hunter/Dustin (JDTB90 I be talking to you) I decided to give you a little something to, before I get to the real pairing of this story (which will happen, just give me a little time to work my magic).

I honestly expected to have this out a lot sooner then I did, I had the dialogue all written out, it was just filling in the blanks that took so long. Dustin, seriously, he kept freaking _thinking_. It wouldn't stop.

Also, the dishwasher incident never happened to me, but it _did_ happen to my sister (whose permission I begged for so I could put it into the story because it was just too Dustin to pass up on).

So…yes, yes I think we will get to the romance part now.

Sorry it took so long.

Until next time.


	31. Past the Point of No Return

Chapter 31

Past the Point of No Return

I don't own The Phantom of The Opera.

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Cam didn't reserve many expectations for the rest of his Wednesday evening after the self inflicted complications of the morning. If executed properly, the plan for the day was fairly simple; finish Cyber Cam so he could finally seclude himself to his bedroom and take a much needed break, preferably one that involved a multitude of reading (dear God did he miss reading for leisure) and was completely devoid of any outside contact. Maybe after he had gorged himself on the books that were stacking up beside his bed, the articles he had bookmarked on his desktop, and any irregular reading his computer alerted him from the security network he had been neglecting for a rather uncomfortable amount of time, he would finally cut the dramatics and get to the process of putting his head in order.

The act of drawing the line was greatly overdue, somewhere along the line he had lost a majority of the integrity he had once greatly prided himself on, and as a result, he had become in almost every sense of the word, a doormat. There were intricacies to relationships that he was still educating himself on, but he had come to the conclusion that in his attempts to earn and culminate solid bonds with the rest of the team he had shamelessly allowed himself to be completely stepped over. Which was an incredible turnabout considering his initial outlook on the Wind and Thunder rangers in general.

By lunch he had several rules formulated and prepared for implementation, most of which regarded reestablishing his boundaries (Shane's presence would still be welcomed but if the red ranger disagreed with his distance he had a tazor eagerly awaiting its moment of glory). There was also a great deal of duties he had been disregarding during his extended tryst with stupidity. It had come as somewhat of a shock when he realized how introverted his focus had become over the past couple of weeks. After reviewing just a sliver of security footage on a whim Cam noticed certain discrepancies in his friends behavior, and on closer inspection the irregularities continued, though most of them were miniscule and seemingly harmless. He had yet to discover the initial cause of these changes (he was still combing through the footage, backtracking all the other rangers locations and digging up the correlating video/audio feeds) though it was fairly safe to say he would not stop until he eased his mind.

Subconsciously he had known something was off, though he hoped for these conjectures to be dismissed. If they weren't, if there truly _was_ something he overlooked…

The implications of such an idea were disconcerting. It meant that not only had he permitted his emotions to distract him, it meant that his team didn't deem him reliable, or worse, trustworthy. The parties in question could have noticed his distraction and decided he would be helpless in their cause in his condition.

All of these were plausible, none of them were acceptable.

Damage control could no longer be delayed, action needed to be taken immediately as soon as he discovered _what_ the detrimental factor actually was.

But _first_ he needed to complete Cyber Cam.

Combing through weeks of security footage tended to go faster when aided by a properly designed super computer.

Success was nearly imminent, there had been some slight delays whenever Cam took Shane's advice to heart and rewrote the hologram's personality (he felt a considerable distinction was necessary to alleviate any confusion his teammates might have posses when viewing them together) contributing quirks and tendencies that would mildly entertain Hunter. Relaxed attitude, humor, obsession and incredible aptitude for physical exertion (particularly anything sports related), and a certain finesse for all the latest trends varying from television to fashion (Camo was still in, right? Cam was almost positive the pattern was timeless).

Of course, with perfection so very close to his fingertips, just _barely_ avoiding his reach, the universe decided to intervene on cruel lady fate's behalf, dropping in a complication that would indubitably give all past complications an amateur appearance and give a jolt to even the most seasoned of souls.

It would only figure that the instant he collected _some_ peace of mind that the world would want to rip it away.

The encounter remained innocent for perhaps the first three seconds, no different then any other interruption that was instigated by Dustin. The yellow-clad teen traipsed in with his usual amount of good cheer, not an atypical event in itself. It was an amusing discovery to see that he was also partially soaked with what Cam deemed as some kind of cleaning solution, evidence of this being his mildly agitated eyes (he would have to force the teen to undergo a thorough examination once he explained the reason for his surprise visit), the hair, partially wet and slicking itself too the sides of his head defying there natural wild disposition, and the moderately dried clothes. To be honest, this appearance (and the lack of explanation for it) was not the least bit suspect either.

What _did _set off warning bells in the back of Cam's mind was the uncustomary amount of gleeful anticipation that masked this… agitation that seemed to be brimming inside of Dustin, overwhelming him.

Cam's initial thought had been that perhaps whatever the problem he had partially discovered was the source of this abnormal behavior, and he took some satisfaction that his work had been significantly cut down for him.

The irony of this thought did not escape him when Dustin closed the distance between them completely; throwing his arms around his neck in what Cam thought was a traditional hug and finishing his greeting with a not-so-traditional, thoroughly unexplainable kiss.

There were no words to properly describe the haze of shock that enveloped him thereafter.

Were it not for the undeniable sincerity of his actions, and inimitable manner and disposition he displayed upon entrance, Cam would be willing to say that this was yet another one of Lothor's ploys, an imposter sent to capture him by utilizing the element of surprise. Crude, low, but incredibly effective.

Were that only the case.

After a few of the lengthiest seconds of his existence, in which he was completely nonresponsive, Dustin pulled back, confusion clear in his gaze, and he studied Cam with a renewed intensity, as though if he were to stare hard enough his eyes would be gifted entrance into the workings of his mind.

It was unsettling, the examination and the action that preceded it, and Cam was ready to chalk it up to the other seeing the wrong movie or book or show at the wrong time and coming to the wrong idea, when what was undoubtedly the real cause for this debacle strode through the door in a perfectly insouciant manner, stopping just within the threshold to lean against the wall, eyes hooded with a level of casualness that should be criminal, considering the circumstances.

As raised as his hackles were (and as much as Dustin required his attention now), Cam could not stop the ill feeling that grew within him, nor the thoughts flittering through his mind.

Despite all his precautions, Cam had failed his mission. Perhaps Hunter was wise to him all along, perhaps this was a lesson to be taught, a reminder that he was but a novice in a game that the crimson ranger had mastered long ago, but whatever it was, whatever feelings he may have on that _now_ needed to be pushed aside.

First he needed to focus on Dustin; all other distractions could be dealt with later.

Dustin, who had decided to address his confusion now.

"So…" he started, apprehension sneaking into what was his once confident demeanor, "you're not gay?"

Cam froze (or continued to freeze) and processed this, Dustin staring at him earnestly as he attempted to determine the causes that led the yellow ranger to these specific effects.

Against the wall Hunter decided to let him determine this alone for a little while longer, quietly taking satisfaction in his very own private drama.

Cam wanted to hurt him more than anything else, involving Dustin like this, outing Cam like this, it wasn't his place. He had no right or authority to put either of them in this position, and were Cam able to he would rip that smarmy grin off his face with his bare hands.

However, Hunter was not the issue here.

_Dustin_.

Hunter had outed him, but he had also…enticed Dustin somehow. He had…Cam would have preferred to explain the birds and bees to the yellow ranger himself; if he had he would have ensured that everything was properly interpreted. Through reluctance he had lost that opportunity, and now he was left with too many blanks to fill in. For now he would be forced to play it safe before he could safely place Dustin's mindset.

Plan in mind, Cam turned his focus to Dustin, eyes steady on his as he gave a brief but discernable nod, indicating that the other's assumptions were correct. Lying was an option at this point, not about something so…personal.

Were their roles reversed, Dustin would never think of lying to him.

The reactions were…different, then he expected. Pleasure, for both of them, that was clear, though Hunter's was greatly subdued when compared to Dustin's. The curly haired teen had lit up, brighter than Cam had ever seen him (and he had a great library of yellow ranger facial expressions he could reference from) bouncing happily in place as he threw himself into yet another hug, squeezing Cam firmly. Such excitement was infectious, and Cam could not help but return the hold, avoiding Hunter's eyes as a feeling of content washed over him, involuntarily, his spirits raised.

And then came crashing down, just as quickly.

Dustin pulled his head back but kept his arms in place, refusing to evict himself from Cam's personal bubble as he began to shed some more light on the situation.

"Me too," he chirped excitedly, "Hunter helped me figure it out."

Of course he did.

Good ole' Hunter, always there to help in a pinch.

Cam fought off the tension that threatened him, not wanting to give Dustin the wrong impression, and the crimson ranger finally broke his silence, stepping off of his wall.

"Dustin has a proposition," he explained, loose smile in place of his usual smirk, and Cam resisted the urge to test one of his many weapon experiments on him.

Unaware of the negative feelings raging within him, Dustin picked up; only too happy to disclose his master plan that was _not at all _the results of manipulation.

Not at all.

"Well," the yellow ranger began, almost shyly, and Cam rubbed his back in comfort, refusing to pay the blond beyond them any heed.

"I like you and Hunter." Of course he did, just like he liked Shane and Tori and Blake and-

"and Hunter likes you and me." Because why settle for one when you could have both, right?

"And I figured…" the mechanic trailed off again and looked off to the side, nervous, and Cam gently turned his face back, fully aware of were he was going but communicating his…not his approval, but his support.

He tried to support all of Dustin's ideas. Even the ones less assured to succeed.

"I figured…" Dustin picked up again, smile back and genuine, "that if you liked both of us we could all date."

There was an earnestness there, unadulterated and unequivocal sincerity, and Cam felt the heat flare up in his chest, temporarily isolating the two of them in the universe.

Such honesty and truthfulness had always been features that attracted Cam to Dustin, a fact he had refused to acknowledge before but seeing as today had been intended for straightening out his feelings anyway he might as well recognize his desires, and for once in his secluded life give into temptation. He leaned forward, finally reciprocating the kiss from earlier. His fingers mingle through soapy hair, uniquely Dustin but entirely fitting, and the yellow ranger pulled against his chest again, eagerly responding in a manner that was too practiced and at ease with the exchange.

This, made Cam draw back (though he did it slowly, as to avoid raising alarm) got get his mind focused on the second issue here.

Taking advantage of an innocent soul. His actions (as genuine as they were) were no better than Hunter's, not if they were achieved through manipulation.

Even if he hadn't instigated it himself.

"That a yes?" Dustin asked, giddy and enthusiastic, and Cam indulged himself, rubbing the side of his face gently before turning his eyes to the real mastermind, stare going cold.

"If you don't mind Dustin," he began, steady voice hiding the anger slowly consuming him, "I need to have a private word with Hunter."

The happiness on the yellow ranger's face quickly turned to concern, and before he could begin to doubt himself, to become under the assumption he had done something wrong Cam leaned forward and gave him another brief kiss (successfully comforting him while just as easily completing one of the actions Cam had desired to do for weeks).

"This has nothing to do with you," he lied, squeezing the other's hand, "we just have some catching up to do."

The yellow ranger hesitated for a moment, but eventually nodded in acceptance, smiling at Hunter (who had the gall to smile back) before leaving the room, probably off in search of Leonard's company. Alone at last, the green and crimson rangers turn to stare at each other, silence reigning over them.

"I know it wasn't my place," Hunter began, eyes turning to focus on the door, "but I'm not-"

The first punch to Hunter's face was one of the most satisfying things Cam had done in weeks.

Invigorating, completely justified but totally against all standard practices for dealing with inner team conflict, Cam took great relish in the action, admiring how quickly the blond's head snapped to the side, the perfectly shocked expression on his face somewhat leveling the playing field.

Half a second later, while he still possessed the element of surprise, Cam struck at his throat with his left hand, not hard enough to completely incapacitate him, but strong enough so that he wouldn't be concerned with speaking any time in the following minutes to come (mostly Cam did this because was is sick of listening to his voice and just the idea of hearing even the tiniest decibel from his direction may lead to murder). As his hand made its mark there was a moment of intense deliberation where Cam tried to evaluate which of the two options he had conceived for his final strike without Hunter's interference should go. Leaving the crimson ranger with two black eyes would be immensely satisfying for days to come, having to sport such vivid reminders would no doubt keep his head ducked in shame, but it was difficult to compare to a little bloodshed and a crooked nose.

Well…they did live in a society of instant gratification, so who was he to go against the grain?

His last punch broke Hunter's nose just as the other ranger got into battle mindset, shoving at his chest hard and immediately retreating back a few paces to gather himself and evaluate the situation.

Cam didn't give him the chance, time was going to become very hard to come by soon, and he needed to get his message across before it ran out. He got in a blow to the other's stomach before Hunter really got serious, throwing a kick to the tech's side that he caught with his elbow, no doubt leaving a rather nasty bruise. Never had Cam been more appreciative for Shane's forced rest periods because he was on top of his game, weaving and ducking and continuously remaining just one step ahead of Hunter.

Minutes, hours, seconds passed, fleeting, and eventually Cam wore Hunter down enough to trick him into a simple hold, locking his hands behind his back with one hand while the other one kept a firm grip on his head, forcing the crimson ranger against the wall with a brutality he never thought he could posses.

"I told you," he growled, menacing quiet hushed into his ear. "To stay away from him."

The logical part of his mind tried to inform him that this path could never lead to his desired ending but he pushed it down, overpowered by a bloodlust so greatly unfamiliar to him. Hunter tried to grunt something out, words to assuage him, to defend his actions, but the garbles only served to further Cam's anger and he pulled the blond's head back and slammed it against the wall, taking sick pleasure in the wet thunk that resounded as a result.

This had to be what freedom felt like, to an extent. He had always chosen to repress his desires for various reasons, mostly for the good of the team, but now, at this point, he could bare it no longer. He _wanted_ Hunter to feel just a smidgeon of the turmoil he felt on a day-to-day basis almost as badly as he wanted to keep Dustin safe because-

Because he cared about the yellow ranger deeply…he was smart enough to know by this point he had feelings for him.

And nobody, _nobody_ had the right to exploit his naivety, but Hunter had, and now he had to suffer the consequences.

"I don't know what you did," Cam whispered, tightening his grip in Hunter's hair, "but I'm going to go do damage control, and you, you're going to-"

But Hunter was never one for listening. Tired of the lecture he lashed out with one of his legs, distracting Cam just enough that he managed to wrench one of his arms free and elbowed the tech in the stomach, sending him crashing back into one of his tables.

He' was on the tech before he had a chance to recover, realizing the error of his initial reasoning that Cam couldn't be out for blood, and the green ranger barely movds his head out of harms way before a fist came smashing down beside him, leaving a sizeable dent in the table.

_That's right, no more kiddie gloves._

Using his legs as leverage, Cam shoved Hunter off of the table, rolling off of the other side to give them some distance. He needed to decide how far he was going to take this, now that the original spur of anger was dying out.

The look on Hunter's face communicated he was only getting starting, making Cam's decision for him, through where it escalated next was not at all in his original intentions.

Lightning sparked, unbeatably fast, and Cam barely had time to resister it before it was on him, in him, surrounding him, pulsing through his body with a casualness that beguiled its true nature. Flares of pain, large, originating in his chest and coursing through the rest of his limbs before numbing him down completely, forcing him to collapse to the ground.

This had not been the first time he had been on the receiving end of one of the Thunder brother's attacks, though normally they were not to this degree of intensity, he had never been decommissioned by one before (not that he was now, recovery was imminent but it would take a few precious seconds). As Hunter made his way across the lab Cam took a moment to observe several of the sparking computer terminals, no doubt fried by such high unrestrained voltages of power in such a close proximity.

Hunter snapped him back (his mind helpfully informing him that a lack of focus was a symptom of being stunned) by returning the favor of a black eye, the numbness just beginning to wear off long enough for him to feel the majority of the blow. Another hit, to his side, he could feel the ribs crack and through the haze of pain he forced himself to concentrate on defending that area. Cracked ribs healed slowly, but broken ribs were slower, and had the potential to puncture a lung if the angle was right.

The crimson ranger had read his mind, pulling his fist back to target the same area, same intensity, same focus, and Cam desperately backhanded him, throwing his arm out clumsily with as much strength as he could muster, hitting its mark miraculously.

He wasn't the only one who was letting his emotions distract him.

Distraction.

Focus.

He needed to focus.

Hunter recovered before he did, pulling back to complete his target mission when a blur of yellow intervened, Dustin tackling him to the side, holding him back desperately, visibly upset and confused by what has transpired in his absence.

Not good.

Not good at all.

"Stop!" he pled, securing his grip on a thrashing Hunter, the blond barely registering his presence.

"Why are you…" he trailed off, frustrated to the point of tears (a vivid reminder of the numerous milestones the yellow ranger had already endured today, courtesy of Hunter, and Cam's rage ignites anew). Unfortunately with the curly haired teen interceding he would have to await another private audience with the crimson ranger.

If that ever became an option again.

Hunter was gasping for air, nasty bruise beginning to color his throat an unpleasant shade of purple, but he worked through the pain, trying to delicately move Dustin out of the way.

"Stay… out of this."

Because he shouldn't have to see this. He shouldn't have to deal with the unsavory underbelly of team functionality.

Did other ranger teams ever come to this?

But Dustin was stubborn and refused to be pushed aside, latching onto Hunter's arm with a viselike grip, arguing with him urgently. "You said he _liked_ you."

And for all appearances sake he had, he had liked Hunter enough to make Dustin seem absolutely unappealing, but time had run out on their ill-conceived plan and it crumbled underneath him insensitively. Was it worth it? Did his ploy ever stand a chance of success, or was it merely delaying the inevitable?

By this point Hunter had figured him out (he would have to have suffered serious brain damage for him to assume anything otherwise) and the hatred he had reserved for their initial run in returned, covering the growing sense of betrayal.

"Care to…explain…" he breathed, curling his bruised fist against his side so tightly that it was only a matter of times before the bones began to break.

Cam regained his feet slowly, ignoring the occasional twitch shuddering his hand as though they were by his own desire. He kept his eyes locked on Hunter's, communicating the bare truth of the matter in a deadened tone he had to use because were he to allow any emotion in he would be screaming, and he couldn't subject Dustin to that.

"This was never about you."

Cold hard facts.

Hunter understood, knuckles cracking suddenly.

"Yeah…" he whispered, blood dripping down his face, "I'm beginning to see that."

There was a rush of footsteps towards the door, and a voice follows immediately, Blake's, concern outweighing his confusion.

"What's going on here?" He asked, hesitating momentarily, paused looking back and forth between them. Eventually he gave into his brotherly duties and rushed over to Hunter's side, beginning a thorough look over (to categorize all wounds) and Dustin hesitantly stepped back, releasing the blond. His eyes wandered over to Cam's, sad and overwhelmed, and the green ranger opened his right arm out to his side, beckoning the teen over.

The mechanic zeroed in on him like a bee to honey, clinging gently to his side (a desperate attempt to find something to hold onto) while he lightly probed Cam's face, tracing the outline of his newly acquired black eye.

"Is this a Lothor thing?" Blake asked the room (perhaps specifically Dustin), and somehow he procured Kleenex for Hunter's broken nose and was dutifully making sure there were no other broken bones.

"No," Hunter whispered, answering for Cam, and Dustin looked up sharply, glancing back and forth between them, just as shocked as Blake was when he understood the gravity of the situation.

They had instigated the fight of their own free will; there was no outside persuasion involved.

There were more footsteps, more shouting, and Shane and Tori enter the room quickly (Dustin must have set off the emergency signal, calling for everyone else to gather at his location), battle tense and prepared for anything.

…almost anything.

Cam could safely guess that _this, _they were unprepared for.

"What happened?" Shane asked, trailing to a halt beside Cam and Dustin while Tori went to join Blake and Hunter on their side of the room. Dustin looked at him helplessly, panic dying down somewhat.

"I don't know," he confessed, words ringing so true and familiar they almost broke Cam's heart. He drew the yellow ranger closer, attempting to bring some level of comfort.

The action did not go unnoticed by the rest of the room, provoking several different reactions, but Hunter responded first, surging forward successfully a few paces before Tori and Blake caught up, holding fast onto his arms.

"I don't know what's worse," he spat, pulling against them, "The fact that you don't trust _me_, or the fact that you don't trust _him_." He shook his head suddenly, halting his struggle and rocking back on his heels. "You know…I should have expected something like this from you," he laughed bitterly, simmering with rage. "I mean I knew you were paranoid but _this,_" he laughed again, and Cam forced himself immobile, "_this_ is a whole new level of crazy."

Dustin, though unaware of the circumstances that instigated this mess, was not one to abandon his friends, regardless of the situation, and he faithfully steps in to defend Cam.

"He's not crazy!"

It was more than obvious he was torn about the decision, and Cam simmered on the inside, hating how close the crimson ranger had gotten to the curly-haired teen.

Hunter continued as though he didn't hear him, eyes focused solely on Cam as he continued his tirade. "Are you stupid? He shouted, exasperation edging in on his tone. "If you had just told me you loved him I would have backed off!"

Time froze for all of them momentarily, and Cam had to remind himself to breathe as he confirmed that the words that flew out of Hunter's mouth were indeed the one's he had thought he'd heard.

He...Hunter had always been one to surprise him, he had never been able to get as strong a feel for him as he had the others, but even _that_…

How could he have miscalculated his rage so badly? Cam had thought he still felt betrayed, but in all appearances he was aggravated Cam hadn't…was he mad Cam hadn't confided in him?

Confided…

Love, that was…he was fond of Dustin, but love was…love was _love_ (his mind was too tired and addled to formulate a proper explanation to communicate the unlikelihood of that emotion based on…)

It was _love_.

He couldn't be in love with Dustin, how would he even know what love _was_?

He was a scientist for God's sake.

Somewhere in the back of his mind he registered a feeling that could be described as panic building up, and Cam fought to fill the empty space hanging about as the rest of the rangers stood there in shock, Dustin in particular.

"I…"

Thankfully Hunter continued on, barely registering his interjection.

"I'm not _that_ heartless," he complained, rolling his eyes, and then he observed the faces of his teammates, finally recognizing their shock. He scoffed, running a hand through his hair.

"Are you guys seriously _that_ blind? Blake I understand," the shorter brother glared in response, crossing his arms subconsciously but Hunter paid him no heed, "He's _Blake_, but the rest of you guys seriously haven't…" he trailed off, looking at each of them (excluding Cam and Dustin) expectantly. "You don't get this…?"

When they continued not to respond he sighed and threw his hands up in the air. "_Ugh_, my team has the awareness of a goldfish."

_Apparently_

That got a smile from Tori, even a small laugh from Dustin, but the rest of them kept to their silence, minds too occupied to contribute.

That had…well, that was a complete 180 to how Cam _thought_ this evenings activities would come to a close. He honestly thought either he or Hunter would be knocked unconscious by this point (preferably Hunter) leaving the other to tend to Dustin. A full team meeting to discuss the intricacies of his hearts wishes had not what he had in mind. Were he allowed to choose, he would opt for the ending that resolved in violence. Hand-to-hand combat was less finicky than emotions were, though he supposed he had run from his long enough.

Cam still hadn't said anything, hadn't so much as looked at Dustin, though he could feel the other's gaze burning into the side of his face. He kept his hold on him, because nothing else had ever felt so right but he just couldn't-

He needed to get his head in order.

Hunter took it all in stride, giving them a judging look before turning his attention to the rest of the team, motioning them to follow his lead as he began to hobble out of the room with Blake's assistance.

"…We should probably leave them alone now."

They exited slowly, Hunter's limp hindering them somewhat. Tori, quick to pick up the pieces gave Cam a thumbs up before making her exit, smiling supportively. The look in her eyes said that this will not be last that they will speak of this subject, and Cam resolved to fill her in as best he could, granted he survived this experience.

Shane was the last to leave, waiting patiently for the others to file out before he paused at the door, glancing over his shoulder. His face was unreadable, though his eyes… there was something to them, warning or betrayal, perhaps both, but it left before Cam could properly evaluate it.

The red ranger exited the room quickly, leaving Cam and Dustin in absolute silence, ignoring the occasional sparking console.

Slowly, gradually, Cam turned his head, finally meeting the eyes that had begged his attention and he steeled himself, preparing to face one of the most difficult battles he would ever come to see.

The yellow ranger hesitated, but worked up his nerve, titling his head innocently.

"…you love me?"

Cam had no previous experience to reference from, had read no books pertaining to these specific circumstances, and for the greater part of a month he had been desperately trying to avoid this matter for fear of rejection, team conflict, or destruction.

There was nowhere else to run now. Now, he had to figure out where his heart truly lied.

Consequently, if he could manage that without shattering Dustin's spirit the rest of the team would probably be very much obliged.

…not the best circumstances, but Cam was a fighter.

And like all fighters before him, he would make due.

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Endnotes:

First things first, I would like to thank everyone who reviewed last chapter, ValkyrieNyght, JDTB90, and Rogue Ranger. Your words always get me in the mood for writing (no joke, I cannot say this enough).

So…there were two ways for this chapter to go, ValkyrieNyght figured out the first way, inspiring me to go a different route, and now we have _this._

How's that for cutting the crap?

Action's not my strongest suit, but I think I expanded my original notes (punching and kicking stuff happens here) quite nicely.

Yes, you will get the Dustin/Cam talk next time (probably), yes, the rest of the team will gossip while they do that. Yes…I'll eventually get back to the episodes. Gimme time, I'll get there.

As for the other stuff…

I will try to do my best to keep Dustin out of the firing zone. I love me some yellow ranger, and I don't want him hurting anymore then you guys do. Also, I tried to redeem Hunter in this chapter somewhat, I have no idea if I succeeded. I don't _try_ to make him a jerkface, it just kind of happens sometimes.

In answer to some of your questions, I have always written Dustin's sister as older (I'm pretty sure, I can go back and double check, but in my mind she has always been older (and there's only one)). As for the date, for simplicity's sake I started off the story in September. By my count we're nearing the end of October (Wednesday the 27th, to be exact).

…I can admit that I was somewhat lazy with the weather. I didn't do any research whatsoever on the real California (but seeing as Blue Bay Harbor is a fictional place that didn't really bother me) and kind of based the weather there on how the weather is in the south. I.E. it doesn't really get cold until about February, except for the occasional freak day.

…I'm really tired right now, so I'm going to bed.

Until next time.


	32. Home

Chapter 32

Home

I don't own Beauty and the Beast…still

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Dustin's day was turning out to be _way_ more difficult than he had previously anticipated. The bubble thing, yeah, who could predict that? Nobody, so that was an okay unforeseen awful thing, but then Hunter showed up and they talked and then they made out and_ that_ was an awesome unforeseen thing.

And then they talked some more and Dustin got himself a boyfriend (which should be a lot more weird than it actually was) and if he played his cards right he could end up with a second one (which meant _twice_ as much loving, and just the idea of Cam kinda-sorta wanting him in any way just made his insides get all jittery and warm) and then he and Hunter went to storm Ninja Ops. Everything was gravy he thought, because Cam _did_ like him (and he celebrated, inside and outside and he wanted to rent out a megaphone or whatever that loud electric speaker thing was they used at rally's and protests so he could run around town and rub it in random strangers faces).

But then he was asked to leave, which scared him, because maybe Cam was doubting, or maybe he really wanted Hunter more than he wanted Dustin or he didn't even want Dustin _at all_, but he just couldn't think of the right way to say it. And just like that Dustin's day was awful again, but for only all of two seconds because Cam was super smart and saw his like, anguish and kissed him and it was _better_ than any of the one's Hunter had given him (not that he'd ever tell the crimson ranger that because he wasn't one to be mean). It wasn't forceful, it was slow and gentle and it didn't seem like much compared to the Thunder ranger but something about it felt so-

Right.

It was better…better than anything.

His heart was all thudy, and his face felt hot, and maybe he felt a little weak, and he almost thought Cam had made him sick or something but it didn't feel like that evil space flu and…

Maybe he needed to talk to Hunter alone because he was turning _him_ down, or maybe he needed to set up a flow chart to explain how a three way relationship worked and he figured that stuff would pretty much go over Dustin's head anyway so he didn't want to bother him or-

Suddenly their moment alone didn't seem like such a bad thing, so he was okay with leaving, giving Hunter a quick smile before going back to Ninja Ops main room. Leonard needed feeding anyway, and Dustin hadn't taken the time to speak with him in awhile. It was a common fact that all frogs needed a decent amount of socializing if you wanted them to have a happy home environment.

And Dustin _always_ fought for a happy home environment.

He had chatted away with Leonard happily for a few minutes (he really was a good listener, and he _did_ listen (despite what Cam said) because whenever Dustin said something really happy or funny he would hop for joy, and no, it wasn't just a coincidence), Dustin realized that he might be hungry. He scrounged around Leonard's tank (usually he kept the crickets nearby) but then he remembered that Cam preferred to keep them in the lab. He was in the middle of deciding if he should raise them on their morphers to give them a heads up of his intrusion (he wasn't trying to be nosy, he really did want to feed Leonard) when he heard this…sparking noise.

See, he knew it was a sparking noise because he was very familiar with all the different noises that came out of Cam's lab, and _that_ one meant that there was lightning involved and-

Was Cam running an experiment? Why would he need to kick Dustin out of the room for that, he loved watching Cam's experiments. Seeing smart stuff that was created by an even smarter person in action was amazing, and Dustin loved seeing these things Cam dreamed up in his head and built with his own hands materialize in the real world.

It was _so_ cool.

Dustin eagerly rushed forward, forgetting the fact he been banned in his excitement to see something new. When his hand was reaching for the doorknob though, there were these other sounds like, the sparking was gone and instead there was-

First there was this crash, and then there was some thudding and slamming and then a little grunting and-

It almost sounded like they were having a fight or something, which didn't make sense because they were all cool and why would they do that if they were cool and-

Dustin pushed open the door quickly, praying that he had heard wrong, that this was all just some funny TV show Cam had really wanted to show Hunter or something like that but-

The lab was a mess; that was the first thing he saw, he didn't need to see anything else before he hit the panic button on his morpher, it would call all the other rangers to his location. He had never used it before, never _had_ to use it (Blake had zoned out one time and hit it on accident, which lead to a really long lecture about the morhpers and _all_ of there functions, courtesy of Cam), but he just didn't want to face whatever this was alone because what if it was Lothor, and what if they were both evil and he couldn't take them both on at once and-

But they were focused on each other…they looked so bad. Hunter looked worse, at first, his face was all bloody and bruising and he was kind of limping and his face was all twisted in anger and Dustin had to take a step back to get away from the…badness of it all.

But that was before he saw Cam.

Cam was…he was struggling, on his side, moving in spasms (which he shouldn't be doing because he was Cam and Cam shouldn't look like that) and fighting to get upright. Dustin didn't think about it when he tackled Hunter to the side and held him back, he just reacted. He couldn't let him get near Cam and he couldn't let them keep fighting and why, _why_ was this happening? Why did it have to be when everything was finally going his way that it all had to fall apart?

Hunter tried to get him to leave, but he couldn't, he just, _Cam_, and…

They were so _mad_. The air was vibrating with negativity and they just keep glaring and hating and _why?_ Why were they so…?

He thought they were good. They told him they were golden.

Why did they lie to him?

Blake came in first, making a bee line for Hunter and Dustin had to step away from him because he felt betrayed, used, and he didn't know what to do. He went to Cam, because Cam fixed things and Cam made things right and being near Cam made things better, except when you were Hunter but that didn't apply because he was _Dustin_ and-

They were biting out words, back and forth, as Tori and Shane trickled in they were still growling at each other and the anger was just _so_ bad that the words blend together, their lips were moving but none of it made sense, so Dustin just pressed himself against Cam's side, waiting for it to be over (his mind went back to his mom and dad before the divorce and he shivered, hoping the team wouldn't break apart from this).

Dustin talked some too, but it was like his mouth was acting on its own because his head was still buzzing from all the hatred that'd been thrown around. He didn't know what to do. He tried to look at Shane for support but he was too busy and the yellow ranger couldn't look at Cam because of all the anger and Tori and Blake look just as confused as he is and Hunter-

Hunter was finally backing off.

He pulled back, the tension leaving his shoulders and the anger didn't really melt away but it wasn't nearly as bad as it was before and the words finally start coming back.

They were both shocked…well, they were _all_ shocked, when the L-bomb was dropped, and Hunter just went on talking like it was an average everyday thing like discussing the weather or chatting about the stock market and all Dustin could do was freeze and run and re-run the last five seconds over and over in his mind while he tried desperately to make it add up because-

What…why did…if Hunter knew that why did he…why didn't he tell him, and how did he know, and was it really true and…?

Was it really true?

Did Cam…_love_ him? Did he…was he like, defending his honor? He made Dustin leave and then he tried to beat the snot out of Hunter because he was jealous?

It wasn't…he couldn't really…_love_ him.

Love was…it was in movies and books and TV and that was it because you didn't really, couldn't really _love_ someone, it was too…_big_. The idea was- it was too good to be real. Something like that, someone who really cared about you, and _wanted_ to be with you on a day to day basis, even through all the bad stuff, despite all your annoying habits, and-

It wasn't real. Dustin knew it wasn't real, his parents had shown him it wasn't real.

Love was a fairytale.

But Cam…

He was so stupid.

He _wanted_ it, so _badly_ for Cam to just…_really_ love him. He was with Cam all the time, he liked being near him, he liked making him smile or laugh and he liked hugging him and he hated when he was frustrated or grumpy or sad even though he wouldn't admit it and-

After what Hunter had shown him, and after _earlier_, Dustin wanted to kiss him. He wanted to kiss him and hold him and be in charge of making him smile _always_ and take him on dates, or if he didn't want to do that just…be _near_ him.

Was that love?

Was that what it was like?

Did Cam want that? With _him_?

Dustin wanted the answer to be yes, he wanted it to be true, he wanted it to be like all those movies and books and shows, but how could it be like that when-

He was stupid, he really was. Cam and Hunter and everyone else could try to deny it, but it was true, he didn't even know what love was because about half an hour ago those were all the things he wanted to do with Hunter. So did he love Hunter too, or was he just really _that_ stupid? Heck, if he really thought about it he wanted to do those things with Shane too, to have him be there for him, and protect him and laugh with him with the added bonus of sometimes making out.

Who was he kidding, he was too stupid to know the difference between whatever love was and whatever he felt was. Why would a guy like Cam even _think_ about wasting time on him?

He didn't deserve any of them, why would they bother?

But he…he _had_ to ask. He needed to know.

He needed to make sense of the jumbled up mess of emotions that kept pounding against his skull, threatening to burst out and leave him in ragged shambles on the floor, and Cam always had an answer, Cam _always_ knew the answer and Dustin just-

He just needed to know. He needed to know if any of this made sense.

Hunter made the others leave, though Dustin couldn't really look at them, his eyes were on Cam, Cam who might love him (maybe, if it was real, if it existed), Cam who could need him, but the tech kept looking away, staring at the far wall like it held some kind of unknown interest that Dustin could only _wish_ he could have. It hurt, but it shouldn't. Cam had looked at lots of things that weren't him before, but each second that ticked by where he avoided Dustin's eyes was like another crack inside him, brittle and fierce and spreading and he wanted to sit down, he wanted to leave, he wanted to go home and hide away under his pillow fort until the world decided to stop being all topsy-turvy, but he _needed_ to know.

Why did it hurt so much?

Cam's eyes finally came back, away from the wall, away from that place that wounded him deeper than anything he thought possible, and Dustin latched onto them like he was dying, like those two brown eyes were the only thing keeping him from spontaneously combusting this very second.

It was a startling realization, when he finally got a good look at Cam's face, that he wasn't the only one treading in unknown water here. For once in their very short career as rangers together he and Cam were just as lost, just as desperate to find these answers that the rest of the team seemed to already have. And as _scary_ as it was to know they were all alone in this Dustin couldn't help but smile, because they were alone _together_, and if there was one thing he was ridiculously assure of, it was that together they could pretty much take down anything.

Even if it was something as unfamiliar as this.

Cam caught sight of his smile, confused by it, and Dustin decided to let him in on his secret, smile stretching so far that his cheeks began to ache.

"Dude, you don't know either."

The tech paused for a moment, startled by Dustin's amazingly awesome conclusion, and then he joined in on the merriment with a small smile of his own. Dustin beamed back at him brightly, clapping the side of his arm. Soon they were both laughing, more from relief and desperation to abandon the icky film of negativity that'd been looming over them than from anything else, and eventually they collapsed against the side of the only table that did not hold sparking equipment (a detail Cam would probably spend the next three weeks complaining about, but right now they couldn't possibly be concerned with such trivial things).

His head…his thoughts, he didn't know what should happen now, none of the shows he'd watched had ever prepared him for this, but that didn't strike him as badly as it did before, because they were power rangers, and why should they be like anything else? As nervous as he was, Dustin decided to tackle this as he would any other problem, he would just…explain it as best he could and let Cam organize his babble, storing it away all neat and tidy, labeling and categorizing it so that everything was in its proper place.

He fumbled for Cam's hand, embarrassed by how clumsily he grabbed at it, but the green ranger sensed his unease, just like he always did, and squeezed his fingers gently, tilting his head until it was resting lightly against the side of Dustin's curls, like it was always supposed to be there.

Why hadn't they thought of doing something like this sooner? Seriously, hand holding might be like, restricted to eight year olds but he was bringing it back, because this was far too good to ever not-do again.

He began slowly, not bothered by the bluntness of his words because Cam would figure it out, he always did.

"I don't know if I love you," he explained, rubbing his thumb across the other's wrist. "I don't really know what that is."

Cam hummed in appreciation, or agreement (it could really go either way) and Dustin kept going, so extremely glad they were on the same page.

"But I _do_ know," and he caught Cam's eyes because he needed them again, more than he needed breathing, "that I _like_ you. And not just, 'oh isn't he nice to kill time with/watch movies with/eat lunch with', but the whole," he motioned to Cam's body with his free hand, gesturing up and down, "the whole shebang. You're smart and funny and I like spending time with you even when we don't talk because you're…" he trailed off, almost struggling, but then he found comfort in simplicity, "you."

"I thought…" he wrinkled his nose, (was it really less than an hour ago?), "That Hunter…" and Cam frowned at the name and Dustin pat his arm calmingly, "that I wanted that with Hunter but I…"

He stopped, blinking suddenly in realization, finally adding up the pieces. "But he's not _you_. _You're,_ you and I think…I think I like that better."

And his body liked that better because it was more than happy to supply that information to him before the whole throw down began.

Cam looked like he wanted to say something, his eyes got a little troubled, but Dustin had to keep going, he needed to lay down all his cards now because if he didn't he couldn't possibly go back to things as they were, he couldn't possibly pretend this never happened if he didn't give it his all _now_.

"I don't know what happened," announced, looking pointedly at the ugly bruising forming around Cam's eye, "but I know…I know that _this,_" he squeezed Cam's hand, leaning gently into his side, "I like this."

He paused and forced himself to keep his eyes steady, because this was where he really put himself on the line. "And I think you like it too."

The green ranger didn't hesitate anymore, he didn't wait and he didn't pause and Dustin had never been so glad in his life because as soon as the words were out of his mouth Cam was back, hand trailing across his cheek, into his hair, and that warm, slow, _better_ kiss completely rocked his world, stars and fireworks shooting themselves off in his mind, sending him to the moon and back.

Cam pulled away eventually (because stupidly enough, they needed air) but he was smiling when he did, and as scared as they both were Dustin knew everything was going to turn out okay.

"I…" Cam started, and he was nervous too (and he shouldn't be, because in Dustin's book he was tops, there were no others, everything else was number two or lower).

"…This shouldn't be this easy."

Dustin pat his arm again, sympathizing with the tech because if _he_ was freaking out in his whimsical, totally awesome mind, Cam was definitely well into losing-his-marble-land with all his technical, intelligent brain workings.

The green ranger continued, looking mildly disturbed, probably shocked with how fast this was all happening (Was it really happening just now? Wasn't there supposed to be build up? Had there been build up and Dustin just missed it? There probably had).

"I uh…" he trailed off and cleared his throat quietly, something he usually did when he was talking about something that was really difficult for him, like it bought him time to gather his thoughts.

"Hunter," he began, finally figuring out where to start, "he…" he hesitated, and glanced over at Dustin, "he wanted to ask you out a couple of weeks ago."

Dustin blinked slowly, wondering how Cam knew about this before he did (which was kind of stupid because that thought pretty much answered itself). He didn't interrupt though, and Cam kept going, squeezing his fingers, "I suggested he desist, but Hunter's…"

But Hunter's _Hunter_, and he was pretty much going to do what he wanted as long as it was within reason.

Or if he was under an evil spell.

But then that wasn't really what _he_ wanted.

Cam swallowed and looked away, but Dustin couldn't, wouldn't have that again, so he reached for the other's face gently, pulling it back his way and the eyes were sad, guilty, like Cam thought he hurt him, and Dustin leaned forward before he could think about it, trying so hard to communicate all the things he sucked at saying through a kiss. He only pulled back only marginally this time, so…happy, and Cam was brushing his cheek again, slowly, methodically, Cam-ly.

Reassured, the tech started back up.

"I planned to…to keep his interest occupied myself," his eyes flittered away again and Dustin settled himself into his lap, because if he couldn't have his eyes he'd take his body, he'd nestle himself closer than he thought ever possible, and Cam immediately relaxed, wrapping his arms around the yellow ranger.

"I didn't want him to get to you," he admitted, dropping his head down to kiss the top of Dustin's curls.

The mechanic had to take a moment to translate what had just been said into normal-people speak, and even _then_ it took a few minutes more for the meaning to actually click in his mind, though he wasn't entirely sure how he was supposed to feel about it, except that the whole idea was so perfectly Cam he wanted to laugh.

So he did, freely, until he couldn't go on anymore and he was gasping for breath, distracting his fingers by toying with the collar of Cam's shirt.

It shouldn't be…should he be mad? Should he be mad that Cam flirted with Hunter so he wouldn't…?

But he couldn't, he just _couldn't_ find it in him to have any kind of bad feeling towards the tech because there was this culmination of giddiness bubbling up inside him at the idea that Cam would go off and play the noble knight for him, defending his honor and virtue and battling all the monsters away.

For _him_, Cam did that for _him_ and it wasn't legit because he probably wouldn't have trashed his lab if he hadn't been infuriated by the idea that Hunter-

Dustin should be the one who felt guilty, because he macked on Hunter, or, he asked Hunter to kiss him and he didn't know, he didn't _think_, because he never thought, and if he had known about this whole stupid gay thing he totally would have asked Cam out weeks ago because he-

Because Cam was home.

_This_ was home.

On paper Dustin might be required to write down that address in the suburbs as his place of residence, but it had stopped being home such a long time ago that he had thought he would never get that feeling back. He tried, he tried so hard when he met Shane, started spending time with him, to make the red rangers home, his home. To get in with his sister and chat happily with his parents but he…he couldn't make them warm up to him, not like Shane had. It was like they knew, like they knew he was a desperate hobo looking for a home and they tucked away all the best parts of themselves, reserving that for preferred customers, blood relatives and well established members of the community and no matter how hard he tried he couldn't get past their walls.

_Vagabonds aren't wanted here,_ their eyes would say, masks of courtesy present out of pity.

He hadn't tried again with Tori, he couldn't even begin to fathom attempting with Hunter and Blake, his heart couldn't take it, but Cam…he hadn't even noticed it, but when the sun got sucked away by the horizon and his house was abandoned in the quiet night, when mom was working, extended meetings, _("Sorry honey, I'll be home late tonight"),_ he would find his way to Ninja Ops, to Cam, because even in the silence, even if it was dead quiet and they held their breath and turned off every machine and muted all items capable of muting, it was still better than that empty shell of a house.

Because Cam was here. And Cam was home.

Was that what love was?

If…if that was, if that was how it translated, that _thing_, if that was it-

He could handle that. He could understand that.

Maybe love wasn't as mythical as he thought it was.

"I'm sorry," he apologized, smile so wide that his cheeks would feel it tomorrow, but he couldn't bring himself to care, because the world was his burrito, because he was okay, and _they_ were okay, and everything, _everything_ was going to be fine.

Cam looked confused (it was sweet, Dustin could say that now, he'd even go so far to say as it was cute, just because he could, just because it was true) and he happily explained, needing Cam to understand so that he can be as…unexplainably happy as he was.

"I'm sorry I made out with Hunter, I didn't-"

He didn't get any warning before Cam's lips came back, eager, _better_, and he just rode it out, following the tech's rhythm for the next couple of minutes, a time out he couldn't possibly be happier with. If this was all it was going to take to get mad Cam kisses then he was going to mention Hunter _all_ the time.

The kisses slowly changed into lazy movements, gradually coming to a halt as both rangers finally realize how exhausted the past events of the day had made them. They didn't say anything for awhile; they just sat in silence, Dustin listening to the steady beats of Cam's heart, fitting so well against the other's body that this lap had to have been made exclusively for him.

Him, no one else, this was now a restricted area.

Dustin wasn't…he wasn't the greatest detective in the world (he knew from experience it was best to leave those kind of things to anyone who wasn't him) but in hindsight…there had been signs. He had always wanted to be closer to Cam, to spend time with him, though at first he assumed that was because he hated being alone, after being exiled into isolation by his mother's promotion he just couldn't take it anymore, not after he got a taste of what real friendship was. He thought he was killing two birds with one stone, because Cam had to be alone too right? Sure he had Sensei, but he was kind of hard to talk to, even if you _were_ a super genius, so Dustin had always ducked in to help fill the void, for both of them. That way Cam would never have to feel alone and Dustin could pretend that he wasn't slowly being torn apart by the fact he felt like trespasser in his own home, ducking through deserted rooms until he could make it to his bedroom sanctuary.

He always came running back, in the night, and Cam always let him, until…

Until, well…_this_.

Cam was running his fingers through his hair distractedly, mind probably still puzzling over something that Dustin had thought was over, but the yellow ranger gave him some slack, considering the fact that Cam wasn't immediately going to let go of his favorite pastime of overanalyzing things. Dustin poked him in the side to distract him, and Cam moved to take hold of the offending hand, tangling their fingers together with such delicate care it was like he was afraid that Dustin would shatter, that his hand would just crumble away and he would wake up, victim to a cruel dream.

Dustin loved the handholding, but he hated the sorrow, so the yellow ranger pulled himself back up, staring Cam in the eye, remembering the one key thing he knew would totally assuage all of Cam's doubts, because Cam was a man of logic and intellect and he was a super boy scout who was always prepared for every situation because he planned all possible outcomes and supported these outcomes with facts.

So…Dustin decided to give him a fact.

No more sadness, only joy.

"Cam," he began softly, smiling at him fondly, "will you go out with me?"

It threw him for a loop (which was stupid because only the _entire_ conversations had been building up to this, yet mildly appropriate because Cam seemed to find a lot of things Dustin did as surprising) and Dustin smiled bigger, waiting for him to say yes.

He liked kisses and all…but it was nice to get a little verbal confirmation every now and then. You know, an indisputable fact for him to stow away for whenever he was doubting.

Cam seemed to get it, or see it, or just _knew it_ because he was Cam, and that nervousness went away, a stiff smile returning (Dustin should really get him some ice for his eye soon). He leaned his head forward, forehead touching Dustin's (_Gah_, it was so _nice_, so…he and Shane could never make fun of those chick flicks ever again because this gooey stuff was really working for him, in fact he must now do more research just so he can figure out what _else_ they could do).

"Yes," he whispered, and Dustin beamed, super-beamed, fantastically-power-ranger-of-the-lion-zord-beamed, and he hugged Cam tightly, loving the fact that this guy, _his_ guy, his home was-

Was really his.

His, his, his, his _his_, and nobody, _nobody_ else's.

Dustin would have to make a sign, or a t-shirt, because no one was allowed to get that confused.

Cam was chuckling quietly at the sight (happy chuckle, not funny chuckle), shaking his head a little as he repeated, "It shouldn't be this easy."

Dustin just smiled back at him in return, completely unapologetic.

"Life's easy Cam," he urged, burrowing his face into the other's neck, "it's just us that make it hard."

Cam scoffed, but ruffles his hair fondly, and Dustin hummed in appreciation, wishing there was some way he could capture this moment in a bottle so he could store it away for later to use on a rainy day. The hand halted in his hair slowly, and Dustin frowned again, knowing that Cam was doing some more of that pesky _thinking_ (seriously, just enjoy a good thing for like, ten seconds).

Dustin was going to have his work cut out for him with this one.

"I…" Cam began, and the mechanic blinked up at him, ready to listen so he could totally smack down his arguments with his pure awesome.

Cam hesitated, but couldn't fight off a smile at Dustin's expression, and he ran his thumb across the other's bottom lip, Dustin inhaling at the sensation. The tech paused, intrigued by the reaction, and Dustin pulled back, pouting at him, eyes warning that he wouldn't be distracted.

Now…he won't be distracted _now_. However, were are free to be distracted _later._

Cam laughed again, outright, no chuckle, and cleared his throat, pulling his hand away. "I don't…I don't know if I lov-"

Was that all?

Dustin relaxed, cutting him off with a wave of his hand, "We'll cross that bridge later. Right now the only L-word we need to focus on is 'like'."

And possibly lick, but that was something for another day.

Cam quirked an eyebrow at him, already getting back to his normal, Cam-y self, and Dustin smiled, patting the side of his face. "Anything else we'll just figure out later."

Because they had done so much today, in fact, they were probably the champions of Wednesday for now on just because of all the…emotions and fighting (for some of them) and bubble attacks (for the other some of them) that had happened today.

This time Cam just nodded in agreement, and not a resigned nod that he got whenever the rest of the team outvoted him on something (not that that happened often because, come on, who would want to go against the super genius of the team?), but the heartfelt, "I actually agree with you nod" and Dustin…

Dustin couldn't be happier.

He didn't know how the rest of the day was going to go, or the week, or how the team would react, or Sensei, or how this would affect training and fighting Lothor but-

He couldn't possibly care.

He had found his home.

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Endnotes:

Anyone else notice the abundance of Beauty and the Beast going on here? I can't help it, the songs just keep fitting the chapters _so_ well, I'm not trying to pimp it out, it just happened, I swear! It's funny, because when I was first writing this I didn't even think I would use any songs from that musical.

Well…I sure showed me.

Curtain call, standing ovation for Rogue Ranger for his wonderful review! Smiles all around, and I'm sorry I made you squeamish (though it does make me feel like, eighteen times more confident about my battle writing skills).

Originally this was going to be another heavy Cam chapter, where he battled his inner conflict some more before he eventually came to the fact that he was, at the very least, attracted to Dustin, but then I remembered I kinda put that down last chapter, and…well, I think we've had enough Cam drama (I'm am beating that horse dead). I think we all deserved a little Dustin, some back story on his home life (which wasn't intended but my brain decided it must go in so…) and basically some good, old fashioned Dustin time.

What I came up with was this, and maybe it moves a little too quickly, or it's a little too sudden, but I think it works. It's been thirty two chapters (not that that's anyone's fault but mine), I think _somebody_ should get together by this point.

As for what happens to Shane…you'll just have to read to find out.

Sorry if these endnotes don't make any sense, it's been busy, so I've been staying up to finish this.

That's probably everything, though I'll no doubt think of something else I should've put down like, three days from now.

Oh, oh, oh, I hit 200,000 words! Yay! Didn't think I'd make it that far.

And we still have so far to go : )

Until next time.


	33. But the World Goes Round

Chapter 33

But the World Goes Round

I don't own "And the World Goes Round", the musical…revue thing

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Life had somehow gone from an easy stroll through the park to a wild ride in a hurricane, the winds shifting so fast that Shane never stood a chance of bracing himself for it, and as a result he was worse for the wear, battered, torn, and dazed, desperately searching for answers but knowing for the time being he would have to hold them to himself, stewing over it until a semblance of order was regained. He knew from experience that making any sort of decision after undergoing a severely emotional experience, this sudden shock, was the last thing he wanted to do.

His world had been changed, his outlook, the actions of his teammates had left him no choice but to accept and adapt to circumstances as they were, and as much as he wanted to hit somebody, to yell, to interrogate until _someone_ gave him some answers, that would _not_ be the most productive way to handle the situation, in either the short or the long run.

So Shane kept to his silence, walking out of the room in a cold daze, the anxiety that built up from the panic call stubbornly refusing to dissipate, squeezing against his lungs in a manner that was somewhat of a blessing, because then he had something to focus on, to hold his attention, to keep him from turning around when the others hit the main hall and breaching Dustin and Cam's privacy out of-

He didn't know.

He didn't really know anything anymore.

He thought he knew, but he didn't. He thought he could see, that he knew his team, and even if he didn't, he had eyes that would tell him…he could pick up on any inconsistencies, anything like-

But this…even after Hunter's casual confession in the popcorn container, in that _stupid_ popcorn container, Shane still hadn't-he hadn't even _thought_ that other members of his team, that Cam or Dustin could see guys like _that_. Or maybe it wasn't even guys, maybe it was just _each other_, but somehow that was worse, because if their focus-if they only had eyes, if their attention was strictly regulated to one another Shane should've-_had_ to of, but he-

He missed it.

Because he never thought of it as a possibility. He never thought, for one instant, that _this_ could be a possible outcome, and that wasn't because he was a bigot, or narrow minded, he just-

It just never occurred to him, so he never looked for the signs. Signs that were now blaring at him like a raging fog horn, blowing out his eardrums with their unforgiving volume.

It was obvious…at least, for Cam it was obvious. For Dustin…Shane didn't want to think about that now, though a little voice in the back of his head would tell him that as much as Dustin loved each of them equally, he had always held Cam a little above the rest of them, something Shane only mildly resented because he assumed it was because Dustin was just dazzled by the green ranger's intelligence, how greatly his personality differed from his own, the yin to his yang, but-

No…no, Shane didn't want to think about that now, that wasn't what-

That had been two weeks ago, two weeks and he was still reeling, though the rest of the team would never know it. He was the red ranger, and he would act like it.

It all flew by so quickly. Halloween, Cam's birthday (Dustin had taken control, decking out one of the rooms of ninja ops in so much green that even a leprechaun would've felt right at home, somehow managing to find a tiny top hat for Leonard) and now they were barreling their way through November and Shane had to spend his evenings running, jogging down blocks and through alleys until he was exhausted enough to fall asleep.

It was all so…messed up in his mind. He shouldn't be-_they_ should be the one's freaking out, or at least Hunter should be (Shane had been just about ready to clean his clock himself whenever the crimson ranger finally explained _why_ Cam had gone ballistic on him, though the only reason he could think to justify this was because Dustin was his best friend, and he…he was supposed to look out for him), though in his defense, the older Thunder brother had taken the news of Cam's distraction plan fairly well, though he was unaware of Shane's role in it, and while it may come back to bite them later, it would remain that way for now, at least until they were done saving the world.

Team unity was a lot less important whenever the fate of humanity _wasn't_ in their hands, and he didn't want to put the idea in the rest of the team's heads that their supposed leader was willing to plot against them for quote, unquote, "the greater good."

He was pretty sure Hunter wouldn't see it that way, and Shane didn't want to give him a good reason to take Blake and bail.

_Aghh_…he was so _mad_, but he didn't know why. Mostly it was aimed at Cam (he had managed to suppress the frustration reserved for Hunter, and Dustin, as always, was in the free and clear as far as he was concerned), because he-

Because he…he thought they were friends, which was a stupid sounding thing that fourteen year old girls whined about, and Shane cringed when he thought it, but he-he thought they were past this, that they were _really_ good friends, like family. That was what the whole, sneak-out-at-night, mucho-hugging, make-sure-you-eat/bath/sleep thing was _supposed_ to be about and Cam went and missed the whole freaking _point_ which was absurdly Cam-like but still ridiculously _frustrating_.

Shane was supposed to be his shoulder to lean on, because Cam wasn't unflappable, he wasn't a superhuman, he had limits just like everybody else, and while he was too proud to demonstrate these weaknesses to anyone on the team, Shane had thought _he_ had made it clear that it was okay to…to be vulnerable. Which sounded stupid and girly and he shouldn't care but he-

He just felt betrayed. Because apparently someone who _he_ considered a very close friend didn't feel that way…he couldn't even complete that sentence, he just-he can't do it, this was ridiculous, he shouldn't _care_ about this, he should just be happy for his friends, except-

Except he couldn't, because his head refused to stop churning with all these thoughts and they just keep buzzing so loud that he'd wake up in the middle of the night, struggling frantically against imaginary phantoms and it made _no_ sense.

Why did he…_God_, he was so mad at Cam.

He just…it shouldn't _be_ that way. In all fairness he hadn't confided anything as major as sexual orientation or potential romantic interest to the tech but that was because he hadn't actually _had_ anything, not any news like that, to share. But Cam…

Just thinking about it made Shane's fingers curl, and he pulled his fist so tight that it was shaking with excess frustration, clenching so hard he was surprised he didn't break anything.

Why? Why didn't Cam trust him? Was he ashamed? Did he think that Shane wouldn't accept him (_gah_, it sounded like some line out of a bad soap opera) for who he was, that he was against homosexuals in some way? Maybe it was because Shane wasn't particularly…welcoming to Hunter, as he was the only member of their team open about his sexual orientation, but that wasn't because of-he just wasn't the biggest fan of-

They were both leaders and they didn't always see eye to eye, so what if Shane didn't always want to spend time with him, Cam shouldn't have thought-

What was he afraid of?

Did he think that Shane would press if he came out, that he would find out he was interested in Dustin and…disown him from the team, or something? Protect his friend?

To be honest Shane wasn't entirely _how_ he would have dealt with it, if Cam had expressed his interest in his best friend, though a little part of him admitted it was likely to be similar to how he treated Hunter. But if...what…his head was so messed up right now, he just kept thinking and thinking and he wanted to let it drop, he wanted to just let it go and _not_ think about it anymore, just accept it and move on with cold indifference but he couldn't, he couldn't because of all the sleepless nights, and he couldn't because of Cam's trashed lab, and Dustin's panicked face, and Hunter's bloody nose, and he-

It just kept looping over and over and over in his head and somehow it always came back to Cam.

Because Cam knew, Cam held the full deck of cards and he never told _anybody_. Cam played all sides, and Shane couldn't tell if he was supposed to feel relieved or violated, so he settled for frustrated and let that simmer into something greater, though he really shouldn't, because it won't help the team, and he should _always_ put them first because he was the leader and that's what he's _supposed_ to do and-

Why did he flirt with Hunter anyway? Why would he go through all the trouble of keeping the blond from asking Dustin out when he could have reached a similar conclusion by just asking out the brunette himself? He _liked_ Dustin (clearly that was the case, he would not throw so many weeks of work down the drain for anything less) so why didn't he just…?

Did he not know? Was he truly that _unaware_ of his feelings? Was he really that disconnected to his emotions, that he couldn't even determine his own freaking preferences? Was it really that hard? Was it really that difficult for Cam, Cam who could pretty much build anything given enough time and resources, for him to just figure out _"Hey, I think I want to keep seeing this person who makes me happy and perhaps make out with them sometimes too?"_.

…Who was Shane kidding, of course it was hard. Of course it would be _much_ easier to go through with a highly convoluted plan that probably had no chance of success _ever,_ rather than to bare your soul to the world. Shane should know that, _he was_ the one who found Cam passed out over his keyboard, _he was_ the one who dragged him to bed, _he was_ the one who comforted him when he was at his most despairing and vulnerable. Shane was the witness to all of Cam's weaknesses, he knew better than anyone, better than even Dustin, how hard this had to be for him.

Dustin…would he know what he was getting into?

Was it right? Cam was…he was kind of a wreck, and Shane knew for a fact that Dustin was completely inexperienced with any kind of romantic relationship, should he keep an eye on-

The thought made Shane queasy, he didn't want to think of Dustin right now, he didn't want to…no, he just didn't, it made him too mad, so mad that Hunter had gone and-and now Dustin had, but it wasn't like he was completely unaware, he knew, at least a little, it wasn't like Hunter had brainwashed him or anything, it was just-

This whole mess made Shane feel sick to his stomach.

He turned his mind back to Cam, because his feelings in relation to the tech were much easier to discern.

Maybe Cam had thought Dustin didn't want him, and _that _was why he went after Hunter, because if he couldn't have him, no one could, but that wasn't Cam-like. Cam was a good sport, or at least, he was decent, and if Dustin had really wanted Hunter he would have stepped down, he wouldn't have intervened, so why...?

He really must have thought there was no way Dustin could love him (which was insane, now that the light had been flicked on and Shane could review all their memories with perfect clarity, though the shadows left a little something to be desired), so he just…he did what Shane would have done, if he could have done it.

He protected Dustin, because he loved him, and he would do anything to keep him out of harms way.

It was so bizarre, it was so…but it made sense, kind of. Dustin convincing Cam to pick up skateboarding (skateboarding, seriously, just so he could compete in Total Trek because Shane was too busy flouncing around with his head up his butt) and calling him all the time, not just over morphers, to check up on him, and talk to him, and ask him questions about useless things that were completely irrelevant to both their lives, but Cam would stop, and Cam would make time, and he'd answer everything, like he knew, like he had visions of what Dustin wanted to know and he did his absolute best to research all the answers to these whim questions and Dustin would just nod on and jot it down, like he really needed it (Shane had seen the journal, though some of the information tended to get lost in translation) and-

It was there, it was _blindingly _there, how could they all miss it? How could Cam ever doubt it? Why did it make Shane feels so-

It was just different. It was just so different to what he had seen, what he had known, and his brain just wasn't adapting fast enough, that was all. It was just having a little trouble with the uptake. A few more days of watching Dustin and Cam drip gushing hearts of gooey adoration all over each other and that should be enough of that.

But for now…

He felt…hallow, aside from the betrayal and the anger and frustration and mostly, Shane just felt used.

Because Cam was a smart guy (a laughable understatement but Shane needed the simplicity of it because his brain couldn't handle anything else right now), he was smart enough to recognize that there were…that he was lacking certain _things_ in his life, and like most smart guys...he…he found a way to fill that lack, to fulfill those needs, and-

Except he wasn't the one to suggest it at all, Shane had, Shane had been the one to care for him, because he knew Cam needed it and _Cam_ knew he needed it, and they were both aware, both so _undeniably_ aware of a problem and both trying so hard to fix it…

In retrospect, Shane wondered if Cam saw him as anything more than a tool, existing or, _allowed_ to exist within the inner realms of his world because Cam knew he couldn't break. He knew he couldn't…he never could allow the team _completely_ in, he couldn't let them observe his downfall so he picked the one other guy (and Shane would love to chalk it all up just to fate but couldn't, it didn't feel like that anymore, it didn't feel like a coincidence) who he…who…

Why Shane?

They weren't-even when they started the skateboarding lessons…were they ever really friends? Was it ever _really_ there, or where they both so desperate to make it work, for the sake of the team, for _Dustin_, that they just deluded themselves into a happy state of fantasy, make believing they had some kind of connection, that they were-

Cam had hated him before this whole mess had started; he had hated to hand over the red morpher to him.

Why had Shane ever thought he could get past that?

But the…maybe it wasn't even that (though with all his anger Shane was willing to chalk it up to it, but that wouldn't be fair though, not to Cam, or to Dustin), because Cam had seemed so hesitant about everything.

He _had_ been uncomfortable, maybe even guilty, guilty because he liked it, because he knew he liked guys and Shane was a guy and… (Now who had the ego? Hunter must be rubbing off on him worse than he thought) or maybe he didn't like it, because Shane wasn't-had Shane been forcing himself on-of course he had, because Cam wouldn't just accept his help but…he had thought-

Did Cam resent him? He and his stupid form of help. It was supposed to make them-he had seen Cam as a brother, but now…now it all seemed so-

It all seemed so freaking wrong.

What if Cam had been faking it all along? The discomfort, maybe he always liked it, because eventually, gradually, he let Shane in, or let Shane _think_ he was being let in because he was being a good little tool and-

He wanted to scream. He wanted to hit something, anything, until his fists were bleeding and he couldn't feel his hands anymore. He needed to break something.

But that wasn't a leader thing to do…leaders didn't lose their composure like that; they dealt with it, like Cam had dealt with it. Suffer in silence.

If that's really what he did.

Had Shane really just been…been a poor man's Dustin?

The thought came unwillingly, and his chest constricted, though he doesn't know why, his lungs seized up for a couple of seconds before he remembered that he had to breathe, that he had to keep going...

Was he just a substitute? Cam couldn't get the real deal so he took what Shane offered because, hey, when you've got lemons right? Except Shane's advances had been completely innocent and fraternal, and why was he still thinking about this?

Why was he still bothered by these things that were ultimately irrelevant?

It didn't matter _how_ or _why_ Cam did what he did, sure, there were principals somewhere in there that had been trampled all over, that had been stepped on, lines had been crossed, but it all added up to nothing _now_, it was completely unimportant _now_, because it didn't change the fact that somewhere along the line Cam had fallen in love with Dustin and Dustin had fallen in love with Cam and somehow Shane had been too busy trying to be the perfect leader that he didn't even see it happen.

It was destroying him, and he wasn't sure what to do. He didn't know who to talk to, because his first reaction would have been to go to Dustin, even if he didn't understand, even if it completely flew over his head he always made Shane feel better, he always helped, but he wasn't an option, and then Shane's second choice would have been Cam, because he always had a logical choice for…but he couldn't, and maybe he _never_ could have, not outside of a working problem and-

He couldn't…he couldn't go to Tori, she would see something in this, something that was all wrong, and he couldn't handle her…the weird way she looked at him sometimes, he couldn't handle that _and_ this and he doubted Blake could help and like he would never turn to Hunter for this and Sensei-

There was no one no one to clarify his…worries, to guide him so he-

He would just have to keep it to himself, he would just have to push it so deep down he didn't even remember it was there anymore, and it was gone, and then he could move on like everyone else had moved on and somehow find that balance the team had found before, before this had-

Before the world had gone and stood itself on its head.

And Dustin-

He was just Dustin. No, scratch that, he was _still_ Dustin. Shane wasn't honestly all that surprised that Dustin liked guys, he had never gone after girls, or, he had once, but his tries had been so pathetically _awful_ that it almost seemed like…Shane just never thought his heart was in it, or at least-that's not _exactly_ the right way to put it. Dustin would try, he would try _so_ hard, and Shane had never wanted to address it, because he just figured-he didn't want to admit to it but-it was like Dustin had been trying so hard to chase after girls because that's what he saw the rest of the world doing, that's what he saw on TV and at school and he just wanted _so_ badly to fit in, to not be…to not be on the outside looking in that he copied what he thought everyone else was doing. He tried to ask girls out because he thought that was what he was _supposed_ to do, not because he actually wanted to.

In retrospect, Shane could see that, and at the end of the day…it didn't change anything. Dustin was still his best friend, he would always _be_ his best friend, Shane didn't think any less of him or any more he just…

He just wished he could've had a bit of heads up.

Except he _had_, they all had, he was just so blind to it. And where did that leave him?

Shocked definitely, no question about that, but the status of the team…?

Lothor had attacked a couple of times since…the beginning, and they had defeated everything he threw at them with relative ease (because seriously, trivia monster? Cam had that one in the bag), so their fighting was good, but the emotional side of it…

They were good. Heck, they might even be _better_, the only one who would really be hurting from all this was Hunter and he seemed to rebounding about just as well as he usually did, like, there was a moderate amount of extra peeved thrown into his usual attitude, but that was more from being led on than from actual heartbreak, and despite the fact he had been gunning for both Cam _and_ Dustin he seemed…at peace, nonchalant even.

It would be weird, but the guy had been forced evil against his will so many times that the odds of something like _this_ bothering him just wasn't an option anymore, there were bigger problems in the world for his attention. It was odd, but it wasn't detrimental to the team, so Shane didn't really care.

Tori was completely supportive of it, not that Shane had expected any less from her, though it was evident from their very brief meet up the morning after that she had been just as shocked about the…goings on as he had been. Still, she was happy, immeasurably glad about the whole affair. They had both been worried about Dustin, they couldn't help it, ever since they first met him they had declared themselves his protectors, and they had always feared he wouldn't be able to find someone who would appreciate him for all the quirky little features that made him, _him_. Neither of them doubted Cam would be able to do that, so Tori was golden, as far as this was concerned.

Blake…Blake seemed to posses the same apathy Hunter was capturing, he really didn't care either way, but for Tori's sake he seemed to vocalize some form of support (a wise decision) but at the end of the day, as long as their relationship didn't affect their work, it was irrelevant.

Shane had been anxious about Sensei's reaction to all this, if he would be…the man, guinea pig was a ninja master but what if he was so old fashioned…?

They had never discussed that kind of thing in training.

But Sensei was Sensei, and above all else, he loved his son, gay or not, and had warmly accepted Dustin's place in Cam's life, leaving them all a little heart warmed with the exception of Shane, who only felt a little woozy, though he didn't know why because he had nothing to object to.

They were all good, Cam and Dustin the best of all, fumbling around these new boundaries, so indescribably happy…

Cam had appeared a little nervous in this beginning, filling Shane with an inescapable coldness at the idea that it was another act, that Dustin was just a-but it wasn't, this relationship was actually supported, this nervousness was actually legitimate, like Cam didn't want to mess anything up, like he didn't want to hurt Dustin, and the…strange intimacy of it…hurt somehow, but only because-he was just feeling lonely, that was all.

There was a jealousy there, because Shane didn't have what they had, what Tori and Blake had. He was slowly getting pushed to the outside of his own team, and there wasn't anything he could do about it.

There were these moments sometimes…he thought (as though it'd been months, years since they'd gotten together as opposed to just two weeks) were he got this feeling, this mental itch he got when somebody was staring at him, but when he turned to look up it was nothing, they're all just…doing what they were doing, casually, no halts or pauses or…anything, like he just imagined it.

He thought he imagined it.

Except one time, when the frustration was building up and he just couldn't take it anymore, he was faster, quickly snapping his head up, and there was Cam just looking at him, quietly, face unreadable and-

Shane wished that it had all been in his head instead, that he had just imagined it all up because that look haunted his dreams, there was all this…stuff that he kept reading into it but he knew, his mind _knew_ that there wasn't anything there, that Cam was just testing the waters or something but he just-

He saw these things…that there was something deeper in it, rather then just another cold evaluation, that there was-

But Shane couldn't put words to the expression, he couldn't grasp the subtle nuances and he couldn't grasp the subtle nuances because they _weren't_ there, because he _had_ to be making it up in his head.

But every time he closed his eyelids he kept seeing this, _that_ look, and he wished he could just go back in time and take a picture and show it off to someone smarter, a teacher, anybody, and have them explain what it meant. Or better yet go back and tell himself not to look, to just keep training, to keep doing what he'd doing, to just keep smiling and stop, _stop_ thinking about it because _it doesn't __**change anything.**_

_Remember back when the most important thing in your life was nailing a Backside 180 heelflip?_

Yeah, those were good days.

Except they were also back before he met Dustin and Tori, so now they weren't really as grand as he had remembered them to be.

They were empty, sad…purposeless.

Which was why- _that_ was why he couldn't mess this up. It wasn't about perfection, he couldn't be, _Cam_ couldn't be, he just…wanted to do right by them, and subsequently Cam and Blake and Sensei and Hunter, he just…he wanted to do the right thing.

And right now the right thing was doing exactly what he had done before (minus certain midnight rendezvous), being the exact same person he was at training, during their free time, and during battle.

He had hung out a few times…with Camstin (Tori's idea, combining their names like Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, though Dustin objected to the fact his name came second), and it hadn't been…it hadn't been exactly as it was, because he had still been friends with Cam at that point, and now they were back to a polite working relationship (he was starting to hate that word), it was still…it was fine. They kept Dustin between them and made good small talk, Shane reacting appropriately and ignoring any of those looks that were not-looks that sometimes, didn't come from Cam.

He still got Dustin to himself sometimes, when he watched him in the shop, or at the track, and he still got to sit by him during their Monday TV nights, everything was the same, so that distance, that invisible pull he kept feeling was really just imaginary, because it wasn't-

He hadn't realized how shockingly lonely it was in his bed until he spent his first night sans Cam, and Shane couldn't help but wonder how quickly the tech would get Dustin to come and take his rightful place, or how long it would be before he got Dustin to suggest it himself.

_If_ he did that, if he was as crafty as-

Shane needed to do something constructive, anything, training maybe. He had already finished his homework (he had begun managing his work a lot more effectively since they started dating), and they had already finished training for the day so what…?

There was a series of rapid taps against his window, knuckles quickly drumming across the glass that pulled Shane out of his reverie, jolting his feet into action. He had just unhooked the latch when Hunter slid in, not waiting for permission, and deftly shut the windows up behind him, scoping out the room and plopping himself down at Shane's desk before the red ranger could object to it.

Maybe his mind was working so fast that it took speed away from his body, pulling all his energy to keep the madhouse in his brain up and gleefully running. It wouldn't be far off base, Shane felt too tired to argue, especially before he heard the blond out, so he simply shrugged, sitting on the edge of his bed.

Hunter, as always, was about eight moves ahead of him, leaping midway into a conversation they hadn't even started yet as he propped his feet up on his desk with a casualness that suggested he owned the place but was just too polite to mention it.

"You ready yet?" he asked, stretching his arms up languidly before folding them down and resting his head against them.

Shane rubbed a hand across his face in reply, unable to summon the energy to urge Hunter to get to the freaking point, to explain whatever it was that Shane was supposed to know.

Hunter translated his actions accordingly, and gestured vaguely to his running shoes, discarded haphazardly at the foot of his bed.

"For jogging," he answered, all innocent, like he was supposed to be there, like they did this every night, and for once couldn't he just leave Shane alone, let him figure out his own issues, because that was what this had to be about, this wasn't just…this wasn't just bonding time for the sake of bonding time. Hunter had observed him enough to know that every night since Dustin and Cam had started dating Shane ran, ran until he was too exhausted to think straight because it was the only way he could manage to get some sleep.

Shane glowered at him, tilting his head down until Hunter was blurred. "I don't need company."

The crimson ranger shrugged indifferently, refusing to acknowledge the warning in his tone. He stared him in the eye, face completely impassive.

"Tough."

_Tough_…he…he just wanted to, was that it then, was that how Hunter was going to approach things, just barge in and boss him into- just force his way into Shane's life because they were the only single people left on the team, because Hunter didn't have anyone else to bother anymore? Did he get a kick out of this, did he…?

Shane hadn't realized his fists had begun shaking, quivering with this…unequivocal rage and he stopped them quickly, flattening them against his thighs. When he looked back at Hunter, the blond was studying him with this searching expression, reading him, gauging-

Somehow, Shane relaxed, tilting his head in thought. Hunter _was_ pushing him, but not for kicks. He was checking up on him, holding him together, or, if he couldn't, providing him with an outlet for his anger because it was okay if Shane hit Hunter, because Shane wouldn't feel bad about it later, and Hunter was more concerned with the team dynamic than his own well being.

It was a startling realization, when Shane finally put it together.

Hunter, in his own weird way, was doing the exact same thing Shane had been doing for Cam. He was keeping Shane in line because he was the only one at this point who could, he was the other red guy, so he knew, _knew_, all the stresses that came with this job and-

Shane wasn't sure if he should be touched by the sentiment or aggravated about the invasion of privacy.

Briefly, he wondered if Cam had approached a similar dilemma.

He swallowed, rediscovering his voice as the thought settled over him.

"Just let me get my shoes," he whispered, reaching blindly for the footwear.

Hunter nodded slowly, taking it all in, and Shane tied up his laces, mind steadily unwinding, settling down quietly.

He didn't have to…to talk to Hunter, or unload on him, but he could…he _would_ take advantage of this…opportunity, because he was broken, a little, he could see that, and he needed to be fixed and while Hunter wasn't…_ideal_…he would…Shane would take what he could get.

It would work out in the long run, Cam had shown him that.

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Endnotes:

Pretend there are words here, words that are so undeniably awesome that you have to temporarily turn you head away because of the magnitude of there glory.

Yeah, it's tech week for the show (community theatre) I'm in guys (that's the week of rehearsals before the show opens where they add all the tech, IE, sound, lights, set pieces, costumes, props, etc…) so I'm a little worn out. I have, however, made sure I worked on this a little bit every day so I could get it out at a reasonable time. The story though…not the endnotes…that's kind of why they suck.

Holy caboodle's guys, you're reviews are awesomness squared, always, Rogue ranger and ValkyrieNyght, and somehow you guys always manage to see where I'm going with things.

ARE YOU READING MY MIND? STOP IT YOU PSYCHIC BEASTS, YOU'LL SPOIL THE STORY!

…that was supposed to be funny…I don't know…I'm too young to be tired right now…_sigh_

Good golly, I did not think I would manage to right an entire chapter of just Shane think, but it happened.

Remember Shane, that red guy I sometimes mention? Yeah, he's back, and his brain is about to explode. Hopefully Hunter will distract him with mild irritants.

…what, I have to name the chapter too?

_Fine_.

Until next time.


	34. It's Delovely

Chapter 34

It's Delovely

I don't own Anything Goes

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Hunter was _not_ rated very high on Dustin's list-of-awesome at the moment. In fact Dustin would go as far to say that he found lima beans and brussel sprouts and all _kinds_ of assorted vegetables far more awesome than he found the crimson ranger at this exact moment in time.

Which wasn't fair because on a normal day Hunter would be like, number three…or tied for number three, because Dustin really sucked at ranking things and he just had a tendency to tie the people/things/places he liked the most because he hated the idea of playing favorites. So really everyone on the team had been in like, the number one position, but now Cam was there and it didn't seem fair to…okay, forget the whole rating thing. All that mattered was that right _now_, Dustin was not a happy camper as far as certain blond-haired, tall, gangly guys were concerned.

See, Hunter had gone and...okay, he helped Dustin out, and Dustin was cool with that, he appreciated that, but _then_ he had gone and made Cam so mad that they waged an epic battle down in the lab, resulting in the destruction of most, if not _all_ of Cam's equipment. So now instead of being able to spend happy-make-out-bonding time with _Dustin_, the green ranger had to spend a majority of his spare time cleaning up/fixing up/reconstruction…up, _that_ mess. And Dustin got that, he really did. He understood its importance (it was Cam's Batlair and it needed to be in top running condition or their zords were likely to crash into each other or the power disks would explode and that would be all kinds of awful) he just…was it so wrong to want to spend time with his awesomesauce boyfriend? Was it a crime to want some snuggle time? Would it so wound the fabric of reality if they got to…you know, do what normal couples do, saving the world from Evil Space Ninja's aside?

It wasn't like it had been that big a problem at first, because Dustin was pretty much a pro at cleaning Cam's lab at this point, but _unlike_ all those other times there were actually sparking/fizzing/flaming things that weren't always so…visible, and after he had gotten Cam to reluctantly agree to his help on the condition he would be _especially_ careful it was kind of embarrassing to burn his hand about five seconds later on a octagon shaped thing that wasn't even smoking. Yeah, _after_ Cam had mothered over him (which was immensely more amazing this time as opposed to _previous_ Dustin fix-ups because he was totally more…like, open about his concern and stuff (usually he hid that behind this look of indifference, not that it really worked)) and Dustin _totally_ got him to kiss it to "make it better", he was banned from the lab.

Banned, _completely_.

Like, no standing to the side, or hovering behind Cam, or standing in the doorway or the hallway and shouting out encouraging things to him, Dustin was _banned_, super banned, completely banned, and the yellow ranger was surprised Cam hadn't thrown him out of Ninja Ops altogether. All Dustin could do was hover around Leonard and drag Cam away at mealtimes (because Cam wouldn't remember stupid things like _eating_ when there was work to be done, and Dustin preferred his boyfriend be able to function and…you know, _survive_) and even _that_ had taken strenuous negotiation.

Fortunately, Dustin took this as an opportunity on how to properly manage his time, making those meal breaks count, and Cam (who Dustin knew was facing the same aggravations in regards to the whole no-time thing) was onboard for this, which was how they came to using those tiny breaks Cam would allow himself in the "most effective way possible". This was how they came to snuggly-food time. It wasn't much different then any other time they had ever eaten together, seeing as Dustin had snuggled up to Cam whenever he wanted, wherever he wanted, in whatever location he wanted, without any complaints from the tech pre-relationship (which was _probably_ another sign that Dustin should have picked up awhile ago). It was just _now_ he could do it closer, or sit on his lap, and touch him whenever he wanted, and Cam always returned the favor, until they sometimes forgot about the food and things escalated onto happy make-out time, which Dustin was _always _game for.

The only downside was that he'd feel bad if Cam didn't get enough to eat, so he usually tried to avoid things getting to that. Not that he was always successful.

Hey, was it his fault Cam was so, like, delicious?

No, no it was not.

Cam still had these moments where he looked at Dustin like he couldn't believe it was happening (even thought it'd _been_ happening for like, two weeks now), but Dustin just kept with it, staying with him every step of the way, doing all the things they normally did except with the added bonus of getting to feel each other up occasionally. It was like he…it was like there was this wall there that he built up, because he was so alone and he didn't want anyone to hurt him, he didn't allow anybody in because he was afraid that if they got inside they would destroy him. Dustin had just been slowly pulling that wall apart, brick by brick, getting an even closer look at the Cam he thought he already knew, and Dustin didn't even know why he was hiding himself because he was so _awesome_.

Everything was just so…like, the way he ate stuff, and the way he studied everything, and the weird way he had to keep every towel that was hanging on a rack in perfect alignment (which was an obsessive kind of endearing), and this little smile he would get that was better than his smirk because it communicated _so_ much more happiness than Dustin's biggest smile ever could, and he was just…awesome.

Dustin still couldn't decide how he felt about the walls, because he was sad that it took _this_ to get to see the real Cam but he was so…ridiculously pleased that nobody else got to peak in. Like this Cam was especially reserved for Dustin and he got a little choked up just thinking about it, and he liked the tech all the more. Heck, if anyone should be doubtful in this relationship, it should be Dustin, because Cam was too amazing a person to settle on him. Sometimes _he_ couldn't believe what was going on, though Cam's sixth sense seemed to kick in any time he was anywhere near doubtful, even when they weren't even in the same room (He was like Spiderman, except his sense was only tingling when Dustin was in trouble) and he just waltzes in and fixes everything, like he always did, like he probably always would (though Dustin would never do him the disservice of telling him that, because he shouldn't have to feel the weight of that responsibility when he was already running himself into the ground with the stuff that he was doing _now_).

It took Dustin a full week before he gave into his desire to stay overnight with Cam. Ever since the whole Cam-getting-sick thing, though the tech had finally revealed that he _hadn't_ actually been sick at all, he was just spazzing out, which made everything that followed that event incredibly more hilarious, (even if Cam didn't think so, he just glared at Dustin as he spent the following five minutes in a fit of laughter, gasping as he remembered the look on Cam's face when he offered to take off his clothes (which would probably be met with a different reaction _now,_ but Dustin hadn't worked up the nerve to get anywhere near _that_ kind of territory, and he was afraid that rushing into that could ruin what they had)), Dustin had wanted to…sleep with Cam. Not like, the dirty way or anything, but just, being near him, _with_ him had been nice.

But now they were totally dating and it was okay, and it wasn't like his mom would ever notice anyway, and Liv wouldn't be back for Thanksgiving break for awhile, so Dustin wanted to…cuddle. He really, _really_ wanted to cuddle.

He had decided that the best way to approach this would be to leave Cam no room for argument.

Basically, he snuck in while his boyfriend was showering and made himself comfortable, pretending he had been there the entire time while catching up on his reading, which he brought (Cam's books were all work and no play, and even the magazines flew right over Dustin's head like a bullet speeding away towards the baddest baddie in the galaxy, pictures included). Cam's initial reaction had been…different, then what Dustin had expected (and he had expected a lot of opposition on the basis of Cam's hatred towards all things that even remotely resembled surprises). Yes, he had been shocked (which had been expected), but then Dustin thought he would move on to like, slightly annoyed that Dustin didn't run it by him first, or think he _couldn't _run it by him first, or he would shake his head fondly, or he would tell him to get out, but instead he just…stood there. Just confused for like half a second but Dustin saw it, and then just frozen, face stony but posture all…like he was getting ready to fight one of Lothor's monsters or some other great problem that needed his entire focus which wasn't even _kind've _what Dustin had been going for and-

He left, quickly, smiling and waving like he had just been there to say goodnight and was totally _not_ in his pajamas and then he turned tail and ran, streaking out of the room as though he were running out of a fire, heart heavy and berating himself for such a stupid move. Sure, he was dating Cam but the guy was shaky enough as it was, and why did he think he could spring this on him and _not_ have that kind of reaction? Maybe it wasn't that, maybe he wasn't surprised, he just didn't want Dustin _there_, because he needed some space, he needed some alone time, and Dustin could understand that or-no, he really couldn't, because alone time _sucked_, but if Cam needed it…

He barely got down the hall before Cam caught up to him, grabbing his arm and pulling him back into a hug, and Dustin totally _did_ _not_ sniffle because there wasn't a problem, they were fine and he shouldn't be upset, and he tried to tell Cam this, he tried to explain that they were fine, and he kept smiling, but the tech just dragged him back into his room, pulling him into bed and holding him, running his hands through Dustin's curls until he was semi-calmed down. They didn't talk about it, and Dustin was grateful for that because he felt like a first class doofus for being upset and for coming up with this stupid idea in the first place, but part of him desperately begged to know _why?_

Why that reaction?

Cam wasn't there when he woke up (Dustin risked setting off the floor sensors to peek into the lab, and he was there, dutifully repairing things) and the yellow ranger obediently exiled himself, only showing back up after school and work, food in tow. He didn't go back that night, because it had been an awful idea that they were just going to have to gloss over for now, because Cam was nice like that, but _then_ the tech sent him these ridiculously mixed signals by showing up at _his_ house, popping in through his window hours after his mom had gone to bed and settling himself in as easy as he pleased. Dustin was grateful, he was, ridiculously so, because somehow Cam in his room (for something other then medical purposes) made everything seem so incredibly real, and he was beyond happy, but he just…he wanted some verbal communication, because this communicating telepathically thing wasn't working for him and he preferred it when they were both on the same page.

Confusing things were never fun (and he knew he was going to have to suck it up if he was going to keep doing this dating thing because relationships were nothing _but_ that) and Dustin just wanted them to be…clear. He lived by honesty, and he didn't want to force Cam into doing something he didn't want to anymore than Cam wanted him to be hurt. It was a vicious cycle, and eventually they were going to have to learn to work their way around it.

They did a lot of talking because of this, and Dustin thought Cam would be mad or at least _aggravated_ that he had to take the time out to explain things to him, but it was…kind've just the opposite. It was like Cam relaxed every time he got something off of his chest, like a weight was lifted from his shoulders and Dustin would be _that_ much closer to breaching the walls of his castle.

Dustin was really good at breaching walls.

Of course, in turn Dustin had to explain a few of his…quirks. Why being alone bothered him so much (it came as somewhat of a surprise when he found out that Cam didn't know about his parents divorce), the grizzly details of his social failures in junior high and high school, bullies, stuff he hadn't even really told Shane or Tori. Dustin came to wonder how they could ever think they couldn't go together, because with every new thing he learned about Cam (Shane had been taking care of him, making him eat and sleep and not break and Cam had thought Dustin was just taking over the job because Shane told him too, as opposed to wanting to be there) made him see how well they just…clicked. They understood the loneliness and one another better than anyone else in the world ever could, it was like-

Dustin was afraid to say love, because he was known to twist definitions around, and he would hate to abuse such a huge important thing like love but…this had to be pretty close, at least. This had to be almost there.

That was why he wasn't afraid to ask Cam about anything, anything at all, which was why on this particular dinner break he had finally worked up the nerve to ask him about the dirty details of plan _"Distract-Hunter-from-Dustin-by-being-a-flirty-McFlirterson"_. Before this point it had been deemed as too touchy a subject to approach, but Dustin had the feeling they were pretty much unstoppable after the whole bed-fiasco (they alternated nights now, except on weekends when Dustin always stayed at the Ops), and he knew in his heart of hearts there had to be _some_ kind of hysterical story in there. The trick was getting Cam to fess up to it while still keeping a smile on his face, which would probably involve Dustin's lips revisiting a particular vacation spot on Cam's neck. If Cam was the Pillsberry dough boy, it would be his _"Oh-hoo"_ spot. Hey, you had got to work with what you had, and what Dustin lacked in verbal skills he made up for in physical communication.

So far from what he'd gathered, Cam approved immensely.

"We didn't actually get that far," the green ranger finally admitted halfway through one of Dustin's more successful rendezvous on his neck, the first of what Dustin had determined would be many surrenders. The yellow ranger pulled his head back, pout that was totally not-a-pout because that was unmanly but _was_-a-pout because it was a super interrogation technique, and Cam sighed and attempted to distract him by returning the favor (which Dustin contemplated allowing because Cam was a samurai master of all things neck related) but Dustin pulled back, pouting (but not-pouting) further.

"There _has_ to be something," he complained, tracing a finger along the skin just above the other's the waist, provoking a quick inhale (he had actually discovered _that_ turn-on long before they were dating, he spilled something on Cam and was trying to help clean up, though he was inevitably shooed away after accidentally arousing him, not that he knew it was possible at the time).

Cam frowned and grabbed his hand, pulling it away, but before Dustin could get any bad feelings about it the tech tangled their fingers, letting him know they were still okay. Dustin smiled, resting his head against the other's shoulder while he squeezed Cam's hand, grinning in self satisfaction at how quickly he was picking this body language stuff up. He would write a book about it, but he didn't want anyone else to know the secret workings of Cam like he did.

Despite the fact he is doing very little sexing, his look of content brings Cam some kind of gratification, so he sighed again (but a happy sigh, not the angry one) and he toyed with a few of Dustin's curls, acting like he _wasn't_ just delaying the inevitable.

Which he totally was, but Dustin was nice enough to let him have this one.

"We had a dinner that could easily exemplify the definition of terrible," the tech gradually admitted, coughing nervously, and Dustin perked up immediately, leaning in to eagerly lap up every detail. He probably shouldn't be this happy to hear about a disaster date, because while he hadn't been a participant it was still _Cam_, and he hated the idea of his tech being all socially awkward without being able to _do_ anything about it. He couldn't say this though, because then Cam would have a _real_ frowny face he got whenever he thought someone was coddling him (not that many have tried), so Dustin just held it to himself, expressing his support by being lovably awesome. Cam continued, rolling his eyes at the yellow ranger's enthusiasm (but he was really just buying time) before he continued.

"He attempted…" he trailed off, and Dustin leaned forward some more, pressing against the tech's cheek, earning a small laugh and encouraging him enough to continue, "to…I believe in your words to, 'feel me up'."

Dustin pulled back immediately, halfway to mad (there was a certain crimson ranger who needed a certain kind of smack down _right now_) but immediately pulled a 180 when he heard Cam genuinely laugh. He couldn't help but join in too (he was beginning to understand why Cam had gone and trashed his lab now) and he settled back down, cozying back up to the tech.

"Did you let him have it?" he asked, peaking up just as Cam was looking down, and they take a small time out from the conversation to address certain particular things that needed to be addressed whenever their faces just _happened_ to be that close to each other. He smiled as he pulled back, Cam rubbing the side of his face (the tech was like, obsessed with his head, he was always messing with his hair and his face and it _always_ led to win).

"No," he explained, and Dustin did a mental happy dance, "I properly defended myself."

"Potato salad?" Dustin asked, mind going back to the time he and Cam had shared an incredibly eventful dinner that just _happened_ to coincide with a few of Cam's experiments deciding to go haywire, and he must press that his presence had _nothing to do with it_, at all, and the green ranger had silenced the rioting hardware with his mad potato salad skills. Since that day Dustin has always kept some on standby, he had hidden a container in the back of the fridge…which he should probably check to see if it had expired.

Cam laughed some more and Dustin felt bubbly, snuggling deeper into him, feeling the echoed reverberations under his ear.

"Barbeque sauce," he replied, voice smirked-up, and Dustin doesn't even bother looking when he offered up his hand for a high five, Cam returning the gesture with familiar ease.

It had gotten off to a rocky start, but they were getting the hang of it, slowly, gradually. It wasn't perfect, it would never be perfect, they were both far too socially starved to be able to fit "normal" relationship standards, though perhaps that was what made them work so…awesomely.

They were just two guys that happened to save the world from time to time, two guys who were complete opposites that discovered that the answer to all that was lacking with themselves were each other. They were probably a little too needy, and overactive, and inexperienced, but for the moment, they found a way to make it work.

And for the moment, it was lovely.

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Endnotes:

I am happy to say that I have accomplished several achievements since my last update.

First of all, I survived tech week in one piece, without losing my voice, or sanity, or passing out, so cheers to that.

Second, I managed to get my sister to make a account, which I never _ever_ thought I'd be able to do, but here she is, onboard, account and story already up and running. She is the Tempestuous Muse, and in my _totally not biased opinion_, she is awesome.

Third, I finally, _finally_, with great coaxing and jibing and dragging and almost-begging, I got said sister to _read_, that's right, _**read**_ 'Any Moment'. All the way through, and she's not even a Power Rangers fan, she didn't even know the _plot_ of Ninja Storm and I got her to plow through this monster of a story, which I have been trying to get her to do since _March_. You know…back when there were only _22_ chapters. So I'm eagerly awaiting her feedback, fidgeting in anticipation, and I get some of the good news first, she's a fan of the Cam, and she loves Dustin (and she didn't even know them so I consider this an epic win) but then I got the not-as-happy news.

"Puck," she says (after the Midsummer Night's dream Puck, not the Glee one, though I loves him too), "this is terrible."

Which granted, I _had_ been expecting something like that, because she's my sister, and if there's one person I can expect to not sugar coat stuff _ever_ it's her. And I'm not writing this to fish for compliments; I'm just sharing my reevaluation of this story.

Yes, there are moments where I have gone frightfully astray, I know there are unnecessary chapters and moments and stuff I could probably condense down to one paragraph that I haven't because I love me some babble. I just want you guys to know I will always _try_ to make this better. From henceforth I will no longer sit in complacency, I will try to make you guys proud. My first order of business, as demanded by my sister, was to do a fluff chapter, because she worked her way through 30 chapters in one day and I owed her at least _that_ much, and I've been piling on the angst so high I'm surprised we're not drowning in it. She also demanded that I address the "barbeque sauce incident" in _some_ way, because she found the idea of Cam being a potato salad wizard hysterical.

So…enough of my babble words, here's onto the chapter, and you guys!

Big, mega, super sized thanks to ValkyrieNyght, Rogue Ranger, and RAWR the green ranger (I love, _love_ your name, and the fact that I have spread on my Cam-love makes me indescribably happy). I don't think I can ever say it enough, but I freaking heart you guys for sticking with me and constantly giving me feedback. Holy smaltz ValkyrieNyght your breakdowns are _mind blowing_, seriously, I am surprised I had a brain with which to write the chapter, you are so freaking thorough and awesome. And Holy smaltz Rogue Ranger, you always make me feel good, always, your reviews are wonderful!

As for where the Shane and Hunter thing goes, we'll all just have to wait and see. I was telling my sister that I try not to plan too much, I just follow wherever the story feels like going, to which she replies, "So the story's like a paneled van giving out free candy? And you just sit there and stare at it and think to yourself, sounds legit."

…so, I don't know. I'm _almost_ starting to like Hunter enough to where I feel bad about leaving him out…maybe we will have a four for all, maybe we won't, maybe it won't be a three way, I don't know, I'll just see where it goes. Though I can say Hunter is _not_ a terrible person. He is option number two, and we will be exploring him later, I just wanted to have a brief interlude from the ANGST.

Also, probably getting back to the series next chapter, because Cyber Cam's been in the making for like…holy crap has it been ten chapters?

Yes, yes it has.

I should probably let him exist now.

Okay, I believe that is all, I'll try to update sooner this time, now that tech week is no longer eating my life.

Until next time.


	35. What You Own

Chapter 35

What You Own

I don't own Rent

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Early on, Hunter had recognized the need to adapt to a certain way of approaching life. He wasn't entirely sure if it differed that much from what the majority would consider a "normal" method of existence, but he knew it worked for him and that was really all he cared about. In hindsight it seemed unnecessarily extreme, considering the fact that his life wasn't nearly as awful as it could be. There were many opportunities that _could_ have lashed out; creating deep, harmful, negative battle wounds that marred his soul beyond recognition. He _could_ have broken long ago, weeping, sad, weakened. Too distanced from reality to ever contribute anything to the larger picture.

Likewise, there were plenty of chances for his life to have provided a much more pleasurable outcome. His parents could have lived, he and Blake could have never been tricked, and they'd never been turned evil…

But life was life, and it couldn't be all good or bad, it had to be both, mixed together in a not-so-balanced way. He embraced that, accepted it. These rules were what made up life.

Because of the uncaring nature of fate, and chance, and because of what had been dealt to _him_ in particular, Hunter had developed a certain…mindset, to get him through the harder times. He was the older brother (no matter how much Blake grumbled about being able to take care of himself, Hunter still took his job very seriously), he was supposed to set a strong example. A solid lead. The crimson ranger wasn't allowed to break.

It was him and Blake against the world, and he couldn't put his brother in the position where he couldn't depend on him because he was a little bit _sad_. Maybe it wasn't a glorious way to go about life, because he wasn't fully engaging in it, excepting everything like he should be, but he just….he just couldn't. He couldn't allow the possibility of- he didn't want to _allow_ the possibility of getting damaged, because right _now_, he was pretty much on his own. Emotionally he was the only one he could turn to, and he was smart enough to recognize there were certain levels of intimacy he just hadn't been raised to handle well. He knew how to act around his brother; he knew what the navy ranger needed and how to provide it. Hunter read Blake as easily as he could a book, and he took care of him, but more importantly, he always knew _how_ to take care of him.

Everyone else on the other hand…

They were trickier.

Hunter knew he had to work with the other rangers and he knew, just like Blake did, that he wanted to…you know, be friends with them. On top of the saving the world stuff. High stress jobs required some kind of release, and everything would be easier and _nicer_ (though that was more of an added bonus) if they could all manage to get along and even come to…_enjoy_ each others company. After a few weeks of working with them, Hunter had achieved that. Blake had succeeded before they were even _on_ the team, the fortunate loser. And then Hunter thought, since everything was going so well, and since it was working out for Blake, maybe he could…push that luck to another level. Maybe, (he had always been focusing on training so much that he hadn't bothered with it before) maybe he could actually…you know, get a special someone, like Blake had.

There were three other guys on the team. Granted, he wasn't entirely sure about the sexual orientation of _most_ of them, but with odds like that, and with their high stress jobs bonding them like this…there had to be a chance right?

So then he dug deeper, with Blake's prodding.

Hunter had observed, or thought he had observed, the others interactions. How their relationships worked, what they supplied and demanded from each other, how close they were, what made each connection tick. It had been confusing at first, he honestly hadn't known what to make of it. See, on first inspection what Shane had with Dustin looked a lot like what Hunter had with Blake, and he respected them for that. He tried not to…come between them. In fact that was why after Dustin turned him down for the first in a long line of failed attempts, Hunter had broached the subject of a relationship with Shane _first_. When they were trapped in that popcorn container and Shane had nowhere to hide, he asked him if Dustin was actually gay. At that point he figured if anyone knew it would be Shane. He asked _him_, and not Tori or Cam because Shane was Dustin's older brother.

If Hunter knew _anything_, it was that you had to provide the same courtesy to other older brothers as you would to yourself.

What he got was the same confused reaction he had partially been expecting, followed by a vehement _"no"_ that should have been the first in a long line of clues that indicated that team relations were _not_ exactly as they seemed. There was a hesitancy there, not an actual hesitation, but more like…a disbelief, of some kind. It was obvious that Shane's life was sheltered _just_ enough for him to never bother giving thought to the idea of homosexuality, neither in application to him or those around him. It just wasn't there.

Which was a little weird and incredibly, almost adorably naive.

Here they were, saviors of the universe, fighting and thriving in the down-and-dirty grit of the villainous underworld, and something like same-sex romance threw Shane for a complete loop. Hunter needed to know more so he reviewed the relationships he once thought had been thoroughly examined, taking his time. What he found was astonishingly intriguing.

Dustin wasn't just an overly affectionate individual; he was almost…asexual, in nature. He loved without prejudice, whether you were male or female or… scarf. He never hesitated to exhibit his feelings towards anyone (once you were deemed worthy and allowed into his special, fiercely guarded world), and in return he always accepted whatever anyone else had to offer. The yellow ranger held the team in almost god-like regard, putting them before everyone else. He valued their opinions above all others. He never initiated anything deeper, never attempted to pursue romantic interest in any of them. Hunter assumed at first this was because he was straight, and being that the only female on his team was pretty much a sister to him, and already spoken for, he wasn't interested. But then Hunter observed him in a more casual atmosphere, at Storm Chargers. Dustin never, _never_ attempted to initiate contact with people outside the team beyond a strictly business relationship. He helped with customers, responded well to Kelly, but he never attempted to connect with anyone.

Like…_anyone_, not boys or girls, he _never_ checked anyone out…

It was like he wasn't interested in anyone who happened to be outside the ranger team. So if his interest was only inward…

Hunter thought there would be a chance that maybe, _maybe_ he would, you know, if the light was turned on and he knew that Hunter was an option…

If anyone was going to _not_ care about gender specifics, it would be Dustin. And Hunter liked Dustin, he did. He was openly honest to a point that frightened Hunter, he never hesitated to voice his approval or disapproval for anything and Hunter had to admit, the appeal of no bullshit was ridiculously enticing. The blond and his brother had lived in a world where to get to know someone was to get to know their mask, and the opportunity for something deeper was…enchanting. Dustin was his greatest opportunity to get in, to experience something more. Or so he _thought_.

Because Hunter wasn't the only one who survived behind a poker face.

He had almost forgotten Cam; cool, intelligent, awkward Cam (and just reviewing the way they all interacted with society made Hunter realize that they really were a rugged band of misfits) hiding in the wings, always watching. Again, Hunter had misunderstood exactly how the tech fit into the team. Where he had seen friendship, maybe brotherhood, there was something of a greater depth. Hunter wasn't sure if it was simply because of how unorthodox and isolated his childhood had been or if Cam's feelings were legitimate. Strangely enough he seemed a lot like Dustin, but with a higher level of control. Cam wanted, _needed_ affection, but unlike Dustin he couldn't go out and ask for it. So he waited. What Hunter saw initially develop he assumed was something akin to gluttony. The green ranger needed support, wanted romance, someone to understand him, and he would take it from wherever he needed it.

Which…Hunter couldn't really blame him for that as he was _sort've_ doing the same thing. It was like Cam couldn't decide _who_ to make goo-goo eyes at, so he just settled for all of them; Shane, Dustin, and Hunter (which was why the blond could see no flaws with Dustin's original threesome plan but he'll touch back on that later). He had seen it every time they had TV night, every time one of them was hurt, every time someone disappeared for longer than they should. Cam needed them. Well, he needed _someone_, he just couldn't decide _who_.

Greedy bastard.

Hunter may have allowed that factor to sway his course of action. Because clearly, Shane was off the table. He wasn't aware of any funny business and he didn't like the _idea_ of funny business existing and Hunter really didn't feel like holding his hand through opening his eyes so he didn't bother with him. Dustin was a solid option, he would probably go for it with minimal issues, and Hunter was all about the low maintenance. Now all he had to do was run it by Cam to make sure he was really available. Hunter was a lot of things, but he wasn't a man-stealer. He wasn't going to step on someone else's toes just for kicks (no pun intended).

He supposed if push-came-to-shove he could learn to put up with Shane. Which granted, wasn't the greatest way to go about finding a significant other but _hell_, with so many other requirements filled he wasn't going to get picky _now_.

With gradual prodding and a sufficient amount of subtle instigation, Hunter eventually got the same reaction out of Cam that he got from Shane. That same overprotective, _"you make moves on my friend and your face will be experiencing less than pleasant bludgeonings"_, except _unlike_ Shane he was going to cash in on that threat. But again, that was another story for another day.

Another difference, not so subtle in a way that was a _painfully_ teenage-angst-ridden kind of obvious was the fact that Cam, unlike his teammates, was completely aware of his sexuality. Which was something Hunter was kind of pissed at for missing, more for the fact that Blake was going to ride him for his lack of gaydar than anything else. Because it was there, in his confused approach on how to accept physical affection from Shane and Dustin made that obvious. So he liked guys, and he was surrounded by three readily available, incredibly attractive ones (not that Hunter was being egotistical, this was just kind of a _fact_) and he wasn't entirely sure what to do about it. Hunter thought he would help a brother out and take the decision out of his hands, switching his target from Dustin (which turned out to only be a monstrously huge mistake) and going after the only other member of the team who had the same confirmed "special interest" as Hunter.

It wasn't a bad plan. Hunter would go as far to say it was one of his better ones. He wasn't hitting on Dustin, so Shane and Cam wouldn't have a heart attack, he could…kind've guide Cam through his issues, and get him used to the idea of…wait for it; hold your breath, don't look too close, _dating_. Maybe Hunter could give Blake a swift kick in the pants when things got serious and trick him into double dating, and then Tori would stop glaring at _him_ every time his stupid brother refused to grow a pair and confess his undying love for her.

All and all, it was a pretty solid idea on his part.

He probably should have gotten suspicious at how easily Cam went along with this new development. Hunter wasn't entirely sure if he should have suspected Cam was trying to play him because while that would have been knowledgeful on his part, such ideas did not naturally instill things like _trust_. So yes, he berated himself for missing it but was still ridiculously miffed it happened because seriously, what the hell? For a guy who was supposedly a super genius, how did he manage to cook up a plan that was so stupidly bizarre and useless in the long run?

The only possible answer Hunter could fathom was that the green ranger and his emotions were on two separate pages in two different books in two completely different libraries and refused to share any sort of communication, which was what led them to stupid things like Hunter's face experiencing less than pleasant bludgeonings.

It wasn't his fault, he had thought…hey; maybe he could be a glutton too. If Cam _kinda_-sorta wanted everyone and Dustin didn't care, who was Hunter to say no? Why couldn't he sit back and enjoy life? Why stress about conventional rules and practices, if he was happy, and if _they_ were happy, who did it hurt?

Him, apparently.

Dustin had been totally on board, after Hunter had explained the concept of homosexuality. Which he never thought he'd have to do, like, _ever_. Blake was still laughing about that one, but they kept it between them. There wasn't any need to accidentally get on the other rangers bad sides. Hunter knew, just _knew_ Cam would be all for this, because while he may have flirted with Hunter he was still making the gooey eye at Dustin, whether he knew it or not. The plan as far as Hunter figured it, was pure win.

And then the fat lady sung and the cows came home and when the dust settled Hunter was left not without one guy, but sans two. He had been played like a mandolin, strung along for what had to be the stupidest plan of defense by one hand, and the other simply discarded him as soon as better and brighter pastures came along and didn't give a second thought to it

At this point normal people would have demanded something better of the world, would have shouted and accused and built up so much anger at so much…there had to be a better word than _stupid_, but it was the only one he could think of. They would have fought for themselves, better than a meager defense; they would have stood up for what they really wanted. But Hunter knew a lost cause when he saw one; he recognized their enraptured stares and realized that their world was never his to take part of. Two was company, but three was a crowd.

He bowed out with grace.

Eventually he got an apology from Cam, which he also should have demanded more of, rather than the quiet, whispered in-confidence _thing_ he received, but Hunter accepted it. Just like he accepted their relationship, and Blake and Tori's relationship, and the sky being blue and his parents being dead. He could only control the controllables; there was no point in getting worked up over the things beyond his reach. That didn't stop that dull pit building up in his stomach, that hollow feeling, maybe it was regret or sorrow or whatever it was normal people who were attuned with their feelings felt after they were rejected, but Hunter pushed it away. He did what he always did when the going got tough; he forced his mind past it. He escaped it, detached from it, focused on what he had sway over. There wasn't any point in bemoaning his personal tragedies; there wasn't any point in obsessing over what had already happened.

If you spent your life looking over your shoulder, eventually you were going to run into something.

That wasn't Hunter's way, so he simply moved on.

Which was pretty much the opposite of what Shane was doing. See, Hunter had taken this rejection as an opportunity to get to know the red ranger better. Cam was occupied with Dustin, Blake and Tori were attached via hip, so that left Hunter alone and single with the only _other_ alone and single guy.

And he was angsting. _Oh_, was he angsting.

Because the others were so busy with each other they didn't really notice it, not like Hunter, the shameless stalker-in-training did. Shane was _trying_ to push past this, but like an itch he couldn't scratch he kept dwelling on it. He put up a front (and it was a pretty good one, Hunter had to give him that) but he was cracking at the edges, his structure was fracturing and soon there would be nothing but the crumbled remains of what was once a great leader. So Hunter found a new way keep himself occupied.

He couldn't come out and just teach Shane how to disassociate himself, but he could…keep him busy. Give him the distraction he was unable to force upon himself, just…keep his mind engaged until the world began to make sense again. Hunter could do that. Hunter could help him.

And since he didn't really have anything else to lose, he _would_ hold his hand. He _would_ beat it through his freaking thick-headed skull that yes, this kind of stuff happened, yes, it was surprising to all of them and yes, even he could be…*gasp* _gay_. Hunter would sit and wait and watch because Shane was hurting too. Whether he was hurting in a heart-sick way or envious way or some stupid-thing-of morality-way Hunter didn't know. But, he would find out.

Until then he would pursue this endeavor, ignoring Blake's warnings of possible inflictions.

Hunter didn't get hurt, he wouldn't allow himself to.

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Whether the zombie-like, going-through-the-motions thing was better than the sitting-around-and-moping thing Hunter wasn't really sure, but being active always made _him_ feel better so he took some consolation in that, ignoring the glazed look in Shane's eyes. Okay, so he was dwelling on…whatever he had dwelt on before Hunter barged in on him, which was kind of the opposite of what this entire escapade was supposed to achieve, so not everything was going as smoothly as Hunter had hoped it would. He frowned in thought, trying to figure out a way to distract/snap out/move Shane past the ticking in his brain because if the guy started thinking any louder or more _Hunter_ was going to start getting a headache from all the secondhand thought processes. The running should have helped him but it didn't, and even as their feet rhythmically pounded against the pavement as it transitioned into grass, Shane wasn't nearly distracted enough.

Hunter honestly didn't know what to make of this entire situation; shouldn't Shane be getting tired at some point? Shouldn't there be like, a thinking limit?

It was a cruel thought to have, he shouldn't judge how other people adapt, especially Shane, but shouldn't he…?

Hunter was just tired of watching him hurt himself needlessly, and he couldn't ever put in words (words that Shane would actually _listen _to) that he understood what he was going through, that he knew how to get past this.

That he wasn't by himself.

But Shane had his pride and Hunter had monumental difficulties with communicating (as he had demonstrated so blatantly before) so they would both just have to sit back and suffer.

That was, until Hunter could think of a better option.

They were jogging down one of the less traveled jogging paths (and he was being very generous with the term because this was a "path" the team had created when the decided they needed a little more challenge and isolation when they were training in their civies) when inspiration finally struck him, sudden and urgent and _evil_ but just right for what he had in mind. If memory served him faithfully, this particular track through the less-glamorous Californian underbrush happened to run parallel to a moderately sized creek at some point farther down. It wasn't much, but Tori always demanded that some kind of water feature be present whenever they created one of these runs, so it was better than nothing. It would be distracting, and that was all Hunter really cared about.

They rounded the bend (also a very generous use of the term, it was a sharp turn or death by tree and pointy rocks at that point) and Hunter glanced out of the corner of his eye and saw the murky brown water, about ten feet wide down a five foot slope, probably at least chest deep. Nasty, dirty, likely to get them both sick were it not for the morphers special healing powers, but it was perfect.

Before he could put too much thought into it (and he really should but being a team player came with a cost) Hunter plowed into Shane's side, shoving him hard past the few feet of brush that separated them from the creek. They crashed down the slope, airborne and rolling for about two seconds before flailing majestically into the muddy sludge. When Hunter was fully submerged he couldn't help but marvel at how much deeper the freaking thing was than he had originally thought. Like, he thought _maybe_ it'd go up to their waists or something. But now, doggy paddling with as much dignity as he could manage while looking half-drowned, Hunter realized he had been greatly mistaken.

On the bright side, Shane looked thoroughly pissed, so he guessed that was really all that mattered.

The blond grinned sheepishly, instantly regretting it and spitting out some of the swill that attacked his mouth before following Shane's lead and paddling over to the side. The red ranger waited for an explanation patiently, arms folded and eyebrows furrowed in a _"leader is not pleased" _way that was only slightly dampened by the torrent of water drops cascading off him. Hunter shrugged indifferently, wringing the bottom of his shirt out and frowning at the mud caking his shoes.

His raked his brain for an answer, settling for whatever came first to mind. "There was a…spider."

Were he less of a pro he would have winced at how weak an explanation that was, but when he managed to sneak a casual glance Shane's way to find he was busy staring off at where they had bounded off the path, looking slightly…worried.

It would be ridiculously amazing if Hunter had managed to guess one of the things Shane was actually afraid of on a whim.

When the red ranger looked back at him with a thankful expression he pretty much confirmed Hunter's lucky guess, and the crimson ranger mentally cheered while throwing a thumbs up the other's way to let them know they were cool. No more was spoken of the actual transaction, though they did mull over the effects of it. Because running while being soaked to the bone was only appealing to Tori.

"Our apartment's pretty close," Hunter offered, knowing he probably shouldn't allow anyone into that pathetic hovel but he wanted to keep the good feelings on a roll. They had come to an understanding after their run in with Bopp-A-Roo, but they had never really become _friends_. Now was as good an opportunity as any other to fix that.

Shane sent him a look and Hunter answered the unspoken question, "Blake's out."

His younger brother had a habit of training by the cliffs at night, one of his less-favorite habits as far as Hunter was concerned, but it made things like _this_ a lot easier to deal with.

He still didn't like it though.

The blond scowled at Shane's continued hesitance and dropped the casual air, folding his arms across his chest.

"Stop being stupid," he scolded, and then jerked his head to the side, beginning to jog off in the direction of his apartment.

He didn't exactly smile when he heard Shane's footsteps following behind him, but he didn't frown either.

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Shane was nice enough to ignore how sparsely furnished the apartment was, choosing to mindlessly follow Hunter's lead as the crimson ranger prodded him into the cramped bathroom he and Blake shared. The blond tossed him a few of his less favorite towels (which were mostly Blake's) that he was willing to sacrifice to the mud gods and kicked his shoes off, glaring at the muddled pools of brown gathering at their feet. It wasn't like he and Blake needed any help dirtying up the place, between rangering and racing they had pretty much given up all hope of ever keeping the bathroom in anything other then semi-habitable condition.

He ripped his shirt off carelessly, tossing it into the corner near the toilet (it was the corner he and Blake had unanimously decided would receive the most hate during their stay there) and ruffling the stained towel over his hair, padding it dry as best he could. He should probably start thinking about clothes at some point, he had some pajama pants that would fit Shane in a pinch (the guy was _built_, as where Hunter was lanky and no one had any chance of fitting into Blake's clothes besides him) and there were some t-shirts he used when he was working on bikes that were along the larger size.

When he looked up again Shane was still standing there, though his shoes were gone, dripping and fully clothed and studying Hunter with mixed looks of suspicion and skepticism that kind've made the blonde reevaluate the situation and realize that there _was_ a reason he should have thought this out better.

Because while his intentions _had_ been totally spur-of-the-moment, let's distract you/become bestest-best pals, Shane was beginning to connect the dots in a completely wrong way that would in no shape or form benefit their relationship. Now he was beginning to figure out there was no spider (which was true) but he was still under the _"let's all hate Hunter"_ mindset that was beginning to get _**really**_ annoying, so instead of laughing-good-happy-times, this seemed like a really pathetic attempt of Hunter trying to get him naked.

Which he was almost ashamed to say _wasn't_ on his mind until now, and while that _would_ be nice (in a way that fresh chocolate chip cookies were nice or realizing you didn't have to fill up the tank when you thought you did was nice) it wasn't exactly what he was going for here.

Shane was glaring at him, but Hunter was giving back as good as he got, pushing past the leader into the living room with no regards to the carpet (it sucked anyway, his mud trail would probably be an improvement). He shut the door behind him and occupied himself with gathering the new clothes; quickly changing into his while Shane did whatever the hell he felt like doing in the bathroom.

He brought the new clothes (all nice and folded and completely devoid of _"hey, want to make out?"_ vibes as he can make it) and knocked _politely_ on the door, frowning when he got no reply. He waited about three seconds before barging in (maybe he finally passed out from all the angst) to make sure the red ranger hasn't hurt himself.

Because he was pretty sure he would _find_ a way to do that, even if he was locked in a padded room.

The sight that greeted him made him think that he _really_ sucked at helping his own cause, because Shane was down to his skivvies and staring at him accusingly.

Hunter just shoved the clothes in his direction, taking a step back before declaring in a tone that was snark personified, "Just pretend I'm Dustin, or something."

Because he didn't have issues when Dustin pulled this stuff. Granted, _no one_ had issues when Dustin was…Dustin, it was something they'd simply all come to expect from him, but it would be really nice to be delivered that same courtesy.

But apparently this was the wrong thing to say and Shane just glared at him, now unconcerned with his lack of attire and Hunter backpedaled, dropping his frustration and holding up his arms in a placating manner.

"_Or_…" he offered, backing down, "pretend I'm a less aggravating Hunter."

Which apparently threw the other for a complete loop and he just stared for a moment, making Hunter feel oddly self-conscious. He refused to fidget under the gaze, trying his best to hold it without looking defiant (which was difficult because that was what he'd always been about) and something in Shane's eyes finally softens, his grip loosening on the towel he once had in a death grip.

"…You're really trying to make this work, aren't you?" he said, slightly confused but it took a great weight off of Hunter which was…weird.

Blake was normally the only one who could put him on the spot.

Shane was beginning to little more touchy-feely than Hunter was aiming for so he tried to win back some macho points, pointing a warning finger in the red ranger's direction.

"I swear to god if this get's any more chick flick like I will punch you."

The other simply smiled evilly, running the towel through his hair.

"I'm telling Blake," he jested in a sing-song voice and Hunter simply huffed, turning his back away so Shane can have his privacy.

"Come _on_!" he grumbled to himself, crossing his arms across his chest. "This is what I get for playing nice."

What he got is a laugh that didn't feel as forced as it _could_, and Hunter simply appreciated the progress that had been made, ignoring the small surrender of dignity.

The door wasn't quite closed all the way, so Hunter heard Shane's voice clearly over the shuffling of clothes being herded and replaced.

"Hey Hunter?"

"What?" He doesn't quite snap, still keeping up his front.

Hey, man's got to have his pride.

It was quieter, but not quiet enough that he couldn't hear it, only muffled by a shirt being pulled over his head.

"Thanks."

Hunter smiled slowly, feeling victorious for the first time in weeks.

It was a fresh start, and he would make the best of it.

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Endnotes:

Hi, everyone!

Did you guys know that a side effect of back-pain medication is back pain?

This seems like a flaw.

Anyway…

So the overall tone of your reviews being something akin to _"this chapter is STOOOOPID"_ is kind've ridiculously endearing and shouldn't fill me up with as many warm fuzzies as it did. However, I do feel the need to defend my sister (who inspired it) as she was doing me a favor (and we both apologize for the delay). To clarify, she likes this story, but like ValkyrieNyght, she doesn't take well to unnecessary BS, of which, there is a lot. In my defense, this was my first story and I didn't really know what the hell I was doing.

Oh, we've set a date! Spring break 2012 I'm doing the rewrite, not that I'm going to pull this one down. This story might have issues, but she is my baby, and I am proud of her despite her many faults. Hopefully by then I will have finished this up. Ha, now I've announced it so it can't be taken back! IT WILL HAPPEN!

Okay, onwards…

Many thanks for your reviews, both happy and unhappy (RAWR, your enthusiasm is unmatched, seriously, I just look at the RAWR and am filled with warm snugglies). ValkyrieNyght, Rogue Ranger (the barbeque incident was mentioned in chapter 29, it's a throwback to Hunter and Cam's failed date), RAWR, and Tempy, you have my thanks. Support is always appreciated.

Now, onto the chapter!

I know for the most part, last chapter felt unnecessary (though I liked it because it actually developed them officially as a couple), mostly because we were finally getting somewhere with the plot and I took a 180, leaving you guys pointing and waving in the opposite direction. But we're back on track now, Hunter's end of life, the universe, everything, as requested. I came to realize as I was writing him that Hunter is a bit of both of ValkyrieNyght's suggestions. Because the way I see it, he _does_ disassociate, not that I can really blame him, he's had a lot of crap thrown at him. He keeps up a tough front and doesn't try _incredibly_ hard to connect to people because he doesn't want to get hurt. He doesn't really… "play" with people, he just doesn't always realize the ramifications of his actions, I think, which somewhat redeems him.

He's trying, and eventually he's going to realize that what he's doing isn't really living and fix it, but for the moment he's keeping himself occupied with Shane.

As for the chapter title…

I did a one-shot titled after the exact same song, but for completely different reasons. I'm pretty sure this is the first time I've explained the song inspiration, but it fits so well I just couldn't pass it up. If you don't listen to it, here's just a few of the line's that make it work so well.

_"Don't breathe too deep, don't think all day…"_

_"That drip of hurt, that pint of shame, goes away just play the game."_

The character singing it distances himself from reality by working, which is exactly what Hunter's doing. The oneshot, which has nothing to do with things like that, is labeled not because of the lyrics, but because of what the song represents in the show, it's the turning point for the lead characters, it's where they finally realize what's important in life.

Okay…self indulged spiel over _now._

It's funny, my sister and I work through this over the phone, each with our own copies, and while it's nice to have someone to bounce ideas off of we still have greatly differing opinions when it comes to formatting. Our conversations go as such:

Her: "Okay, you don't need that comma there."

Me: "I know, but I'm going to keep it."

Her: "…but you don't _need_ it."

Me: "Yeah, but I want it."

Her: "But it doesn't need to be _there._"

Me: "It's a style choice."

Her: "…my brain hurts."

Hm…I think these endnotes are even longer then last times. Rogue?

Holy crap this story's been going on for 8 months!

…and Cyber Cam still doesn't exist.

Oops?

Until next time.

PS, listening to "The Lazy Song" is not a good way to motivate yourself, even if Poreotics make really cute monkeys.


	36. As We Stumble Along

Chapter 36

As We Stumble Along

I don't own the Drowsy Chaperone.

Cyber Cam's finally reared his ugly head and _everybody's _got an opinion about it.

Except the blue rangers, because they were too busy dancing off screen. Seriously, look over there, they're dancing!

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While he _could_ sit and ponder the many instances where Cyber Cam's programming could have gone awry (and he had to be realistic, there were many), Cam had chosen instead to stew over his decision to insure Cyber Cam's unlimited access to his entire array of databases. He could easily chalk it up as an unnecessary precaution, his paranoia working at it's finest, but if he was going to be honest it was because he had taken a small pride in the fact that he _could_. Yes, it was useful to have a program that knew everything and in theory, it sounded completely logical. What was the point of designing a super computer if it didn't have the capabilities to provide solutions for any situation? There wasn't. But there was even _less_ of a point if something in the hardware blew out and total operational control had been compromised. Which was also because of his pride…and his desire to want to spend more time with Dustin…and _Dustin's_ desire for him to spend more time with Dustin…

So Cam may have jumped the gun a little. May have gotten too eager, didn't run enough tests, didn't check everything as thoroughly as he should have.

And now he was trapped in a closet, joints bound by a rather creative and ingenious combination of knots, so intricately woven that he would be lucky if he managed to untie them in anything _less_ than three hours. To say he was displeased with this turn of events would be like saying he was displeased with Lothor trying to take over the world. It just didn't _quite_ do his circumstances justice.

And during his lost time here who _knew_ what Cyber Cam could be up to. Cam thought he knew, thought he had _some_ idea what the rogue program could have wanted, but if his command override was failing any number of his hologram's other systems could have backfired or completely fallen into decline. For all Cam knew his program could be doing something as harmful as running around attempting to lead the Blue Bay Harbor's citizen's into revolution or as benign as sunbathing.

The damage was too deep…probably, and Cam was too occupied to really give it much thought.

One thing was guaranteed though; Cyber Cam did _not_ take well to authority figures. He had missed Cam's father luckily, but if the hologram met up with Shane or Hunter and orders started flying things would probably not go well. Social confrontation through bondage does not a solid relationship make. Probably. Cam wasn't too up-to-date on those kind of things but that seemed like one of the more obvious rules. Then again, there seemed to be a number of unnecessary and stupidly enforced colloquialisms out there nowadays. The fist bump thing, a modern twist on the traditional handshake, or a germaphobe's poor attempt at blending in? Who knew?

He exhaled sharply through his gag, commanding his mind to get off of those useless trains of thought and back to the matter of acquiring his freedom. A note for later, he needed to improve the ventilation to the closets. The stifling heat and lack of oxygen were hindering his progress somewhat.

_Somewhat_, he thought again, rolling his eyes. His mind may be impaired but his pride was stilling chugging steadily along, completely unbothered by this turn of events.

He frowned as much as the constraining cloth allowed, berating himself as his fingers picked away at the third knot, painstakingly slow.

Pity would get him nowhere. Still, he couldn't help but…no, he needed to focus.

Victory came slowly over that one knot, a naive amateur among seasoned pros, and Cam moved on. Despite knowing better he couldn't help but trail his mind over the possible actions his creation could be executing. Would he seek out the others? Dustin? Cam loathed the thought, hoped that _that_ particular development happened so late in the programming stages that Cyber Cam didn't hold the same fondness for the yellow ranger that Cam did.

No, at the time he had been focused on Sha…

Cam shook his head, wrists jerking and fingers slipping with sweat, and the jolt of pain (small as it was) was enough to bring him back on track.

Cyber Cam should hold no preference for any of them, but then again, Cyber Cam shouldn't have gone rogue. He shouldn't have become independent. And the list goes on and _on_ about what he _shouldn't _be able to do, and what he _could_ do and what he _might_ be doing but when it all came down to it all Cam could do was sit in this god forsaken closet and work at untying the Mona Lisa of knot combinations so that he could get _outside_ and put a stop to whatever shenanigans or not-catastrophes his cyber replicate could be committing. In fact, it didn't even matter if all his program had done after he tied up Cam was stand still facing a wall, the tech was going to bring it down and bring it down _hard_.

And then, when the mess was cleaned up and he set in the mother of all command overrides, he was going to take a nap. Preferably with Dustin. Because if he had learned anything from his time with Shane (as much as he tried to forget it), it was that stress was as dangerous a thing as any of the monster they fought. And _like_ the monsters they fought, it needed to be dealt with accordingly.

And with pillows.

Lots and _lots_ of pillows.

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New Cam was starting to freak him out just a little bit.

Dustin didn't know what happened, he didn't know if he _said_ something that made Cam decide to…dude up or if the computer genius just kind've epiphanied it on his own, but between this morning and _now_ Cam had decided to give himself a major overhaul and Dustin didn't know if he was supposed to feel flattered or mildly freaked out.

It was touching, in a way…kind've.

His boyfriend was trying so hard (and succeeding, he totally smacked Shane down at skateboarding) and being so peppy and happy and…radical. But it was really weird. Like, _really_ weird. And most of Dustin just wanted to find the reset button on this day so he could just hang out with Cam and prevent whatever caused _this_ to happen.

Because Dustin wasn't happy with this, not even a little bit. Well…the pants were cool, he'd give Cam that, but everything else was so _not_ flying with Dustin it might as well be deep-sea diving for Davy Jone's lost eyepatch or something. Could he really be blamed here? He _liked_ old Cam. Old Cam was the chocolate to his sundae, the cheese to his burger, the button to his teddy bear's eye (and yes, you were never too old for a teddy bear). Old Cam, _normal_ Cam was the perfect compliment to Dustin; he was the calm one, the smart one, the dominant one. He gathered all of Dustin's wild thoughts and made sense of what the yellow ranger had been repeatedly told was indiscernible. He was sarcastic and lovably grumpy and _just_ the right amount of crotchety that made Dustin's days sparkle like a little girls tennis shoes.

And he wasn't hating this because he didn't like change, he just…he liked original Cam better. This sequel, new and improved, _"totally wicked"_ version was giving him a sour feeling in his stomach and he didn't know how to deal with it. Was this what Cam thought he wanted? Like, another _him_? Why would Dustin want to date himself? _He _wasn't that big a fan of himself, that was why he was dating _Cam_. Did he really come off as that self-absorbed?

And the worst part wasn't even that Cam decided this completely out of the blue (because Dustin hadn't even giving off a _hint_ that he was unhappy and required changes _now_ please-and-thank-you-very-much), it was the fact that this…

This was pretty much Cam's interpretation of _him_.

And as good as he was at sports, Cam's interpretation of him was kind of a tool.

Like, all the couple-y stuff Dustin had finally gotten them to work up to in public had been completely thrown out the window. Cam was ignoring him, maybe because he wanted to do a good job of showing off how much he could change, but this was _really_ working against what Dustin wanted. How could a guy who was that smart do something this stupid? Seriously, Dustin wanted to know. If there was a book or website that someone could point him to he would be really very thankful because _none of this made any sense._

And he wasn't the only one who thought this. He could tell, the best friend language he had working out with Shane totally screamed that he wasn't buying whatever it was Cam was selling either. And Dustin didn't need to be bestest-best pals with Hunter to see that the crimson ranger was suspicious too, occasionally glancing at Dustin searchingly, as though _he_ knew anything about this.

Dustin scrubbed a hand angrily through his hair, sending a worried look Shane's way. He didn't _care_ how good Cam was at surfing, he just wanted him back.

Shane caught his eye and reached over to give his arm a comforting squeeze, somehow reading his mind. Dustin _hated_ this, he didn't know why…

The thought came to him so suddenly that he was pretty much bowled over by it, air leaving his lungs so fast that Shane sent him a concerned look and Dustin had to wave him off, pulling away to get some space. And it was stupid, it was a stupid thought because by this point he and Cam had reassured each other of their relationship so many times they were practically champions of it, of being insecure and doubtful and needy and it was almost a wonder they managed to breath without the other calling the other into question. It was beyond ridiculous, it was just sad really, because they should know, _know_ by now where they stood but then Cam went and did stuff like this and Dustin couldn't help but wonder if Cam was really trying to give him what he thought Dustin wanted or if he was trying to get him to break up with him by giving him what he knew was the exact opposite of what he needed.

And it _hurt_.

The idea, the possibility hurt, and the fact that Dustin _thought_ of it hurt but once it was there it refused to leave, dancing an Irish jig around his brain, and he couldn't take his mind off of it. If _this_ was how Cam saw Dustin he really should break it off now because it was like an awful parody of a human being, the language and actions all exaggerated and his voice way too loud. It was like a joke, but Dustin wasn't laughing, and as far as he could tell no one else was either.

There should be rules, that if you wanted something you should just come out and say it, or ask it, or do something besides _completely change your personality for no obvious reason_.

Dustin didn't notice how tightly he'd wound his arms across his chest until Shane draped an arm over his shoulders. The tension was obvious and he tried to breathe it out, like they did in training, but it was harder to do than it should have been. He hated new Cam, he hated new Cam and he was pretty sure Shane hated new Cam but he couldn't talk about it. He couldn't joke about it and bond about it like he would have with Shane because…and it was odd, because he should. Dustin _should_ be able to talk to Shane about everything, because he was _Shane_, but every time he opened his mouth the words just kind've choked up in his throat and he couldn't do anything but breathe and avoid the other's eyes. When did that happen? When did he lose Shane? They'd been doing the same things; they were like they had always been except…they weren't.

Dustin hadn't realized it, but it was like there was a wall there. And he tried and tried to remember when he put it up except he didn't think he put one up but he _could_ have he supposed and…

Was it Shane, or was it him? Was Shane holding back, or was it because Dustin never wanted to share any of the secret world of Cam and that was pretty much all he could think about nowadays. The thoughts danced harder, tapping to a thunderous applause that made Dustin's head hurt and the tension came back with a vengeance, the arms digging in tighter.

When did he lose both of them?

What did he do?

What could he do to fix it?

The questions echoed with the thoughts, pounding, pulsing, reverberating, steadily beating on and on until everything else was muted into nothingness. The world went on around him, Cam kept surfing on the waves (the stupid, awful devils of salt) and Shane kept an arm around him. Hunter and Blake were still on standby trading jokes and casual barbs, but all Dustin could hear is the chaos in his head. He couldn't surrender to it, because he knew it was an overreaction and he needed to hold still and evaluate the situation and _then_ make a choice (which was lesson that took him a painful amount of time and numerous failures to learn) and not give into his emotions. He couldn't lash out right now. He wanted to, but he couldn't. Sensei had taught him better, and maybe it could change. Maybe he could get back old Cam.

It wouldn't alter the fact that he had lost Shane, but he couldn't focus on that now. That was something he was going to have to fix later. Right now, he had to keep his priorities straight.

There was a nagging voice in the back of his mind that kept trying to tell him Shane was just as important as Cam was, maybe more, but with well practiced ease he managed to ignore it.

That wasn't something he could think about now.

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As amusing as Cam's abrupt personality one eighty was, the novelty was beginning to wear off and Hunter couldn't help but feel that new Cam was a bit of a dick. And yeah, that was about all he felt about the matter.

Well, _that_ and the growing irritation of losing at a sport he was really_, really_ good at, and knowing that Blake wouldn't stop whining about it once they got off the track.

But that was _nothing_ compared to what the rest of the team was feeling.

He couldn't decide if Shane got his obsessive need to over complicate things and marinate in his own personal _angsting_ juices from Dustin, or if the yellow ranger had simply osmosised it from the red ranger, because right now the mechanic was stirring up a whole mess of unpleasant feelings that would put even the most temperamental depression-consumed individual to shame. It was actually rather impressive. Hunter had taken a moment to simply…appreciate it made him sound like the lowest of scum so he supposed that saying he just acknowledged it would have to do, because really, Dustin was grieving badly.

Not that Hunter could blame him.

It figured that once their team managed to sort out a semblance of balance with each other (everyone had _someone_ to turn to, even if Hunter had to unwillingly drag Shane kicking and pridefully _not_-screaming) that someone would go and do something remarkably _stupid_ to ruin it. It just _had_ to be done at some point. Though he honestly expected it to be his brother because Cam had _way_ too many screw up's lately. At least, as far as team relations went. He should have been relationship-problemed out by now, and sometimes Hunter thought that the tech just stayed up late into the hours of the night inventing new ways to screw with the rest of them.

Alright, even Hunter could admit that was a little harsh, but he was still a little sore over the cracked ribs thing so the blond believed he was entitled to a little inner-pettiness.

But that wasn't the real problem here.

It was almost like Cam was having a mid-life crisis thirty years too soon (though were he measuring the other's life by accomplishments Hunter would rank him somewhere in his mid-seventy's). Perhaps all the stress of saving the world plus the combined epiphany of _"Why yes, Dustin does bring me jollies"_ may have brought on some kind of mental break down, which also seemed appropriate. It made sense, given the job. Now that Hunter had thought of it he was honestly surprised this hadn't happened to any of them sooner. Maybe Shane was just a scraped knee away from becoming a ballroom dancer, or Tori a chipped nail from tagging graffiti, or something.

Blake was fine, Hunter had seen to that, but he would keep a closer eye on Shane. Just in case.

He was _really_ not a fan of ballroom dancing.

On a normal day Hunter would attribute a portion of the blame for this to Dustin, because he was the one in charge of keeping Cam sane and _not_ acting so incredibly dick-like, but right now he just didn't have the heart for it. It wasn't Dustin's fault he had such a hard task in front of him, but he _was_ the one who knew Cam best.

Except for maybe Shane, but even _he_ didn't look all that happy about this new turn of events.

Yes, there was much distress brewing there.

Shane was picking up all of Dustin's stray sorrow rays, and his face was most definitely sporting _"the leader is not happy"_ look. Seriously, if Cam didn't come down from his mind trip soon _someone's_ brain was going to shatter and the mushy explosion thereafter was _not_ going to be a pleasant clean up for _anybody_. Hunter was a realistic guy, he knew the signs, he knew it was going to happen eventually because of the not-looks that kept passing between Cam and Shane and the not-dating happening between Blake and Tori and the secret meet-ups happening between the blues and a certain yellow.

He knew it was inevitable, he just didn't want the catalyst to be something _this_ ridiculous.

Really, was that too much to ask?

That was it; he was having a nice, long chat with Cam after this little afternoon foray is over. The kid gloves needed to come off, and as much as Shane and Dustin probably wanted to tackle this and have an all out feeling-fest, Hunter thought a little frank heart-to-heart would probably go over a _lot_ better. That and a sharp smack to the head would do the trick. Hunter would let the tech know in completely unfriendly words (okay, so he was still a little miffed about the fact that Cam was currently wiping the floor with him at his own game) how this stupidity must cease and desist.

He was really dying to know what had happened to make this whole chain of events _be_. Did Cam hit his head?

Well…yes, he did early during training, but it hadn't been any different from when the rest of them had gotten smacked around.

Maybe this was one of Lothor's monsters in action.

See, _that _made sense. Tori had told Blake about this one time Lothor had made an evil clone of her (though the only crimes it managed to commit were against fashion, so he heard) so perhaps this was something like that. Then again, while Cam's new wardrobe was painfully awkward (Hunter had every intention of stealing that beanie first chance he got for the goodness of humanity) the green ranger's usual attire was put together so haphazardly through benign negligence that this _could_ be Cam's sorry attempt at "cool". Hunter could see that, the entire thought process behind it. It was like Cam tried so hard to research the pieces and was like, _"Yeah, jersey and camo are totally in, and that beanie thing, it will totally work"_ except with a lot more multi-syllable words and biting sarcasm.

As much as big as Cam was on self-inflicted pain, Hunter was really starting to lean towards the idea of monster tampering here.

Maybe he got hit by a ray gun.

_Or_ he got hit in the head and _then_ got hit with a ray.

Or maybe a monster hit him with a ray and _then_ hit him in the head, or maybe it was a spell, or a potion, or voodoo…

The list went on, but now that Hunter had thought of it he couldn't see past it, knowing in his gut that he couldn't be wrong. Unfortunately he couldn't _do_ anything about it until evil-maybe-under-a-spell Cam decided to start wreaking havoc (of the bodily harm kind, as opposed to this psychological warfare he was currently employing) that went beyond schooling them at their respective sports. If the monster's goals were to hurt their feelings he managed to succeed, though it had very little to do with his physical victories and everything to do with new Cam's very unpleasant disposition.

As sure as he was, Hunter didn't want to give Dustin any false hope on the off-hand chance he was wrong. He was pretty sure he wasn't, but with all the…sorrow that was getting generated over there Hunter wanted to be a hundred percent positive. There was no sense in dealing out any more damage just because he had a theory. That doubled for Shane too. As much as he'd deny it (though the red ranger never had aloud, because Hunter had never asked him) Shane held Cam in very high regard, and this tomfoolery (Blake won't get off that stupid word this week) was hurting him just as badly as it was hurting Dustin.

Hunter would try to broach the subject later when all this was over, though he could almost guarantee that no progress would be made. Their fearless leader was a freaking brick wall when it came to most things of the touchy-feely variety and Hunter wasn't exactly a pro when it came to managing them either which could lead to…mixed results. Maybe the unconventional would be exactly what Shane needed to get dragged out of this funk.

But that was a problem for later.

Right now he had an evil-clone-hypnotized-head-smashed-super-talented Asian to keep an eye on. And a headache with the promise that it would steadily grow as the day progressed.

So really it was just another Saturday.

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So while there had been a lot of things Shane hadn't liked about new Cam (like his complete disregard for Dustin and respect and manners and normal team function and _**arg**_-) the whole abandoning-them-mid-fight was kind've taking the cake right now. Shane couldn't really put to words how angry he was but if he had to paint a picture it would be blood-red dipped in black dipped in anger and then doused in gasoline and set on fire and then the ashes would have been jettisoned into the depths of space for Lothor to chew on because _that _was how much he didn't feel like dealing with the idea of being angry at Cam. No…wait, that was how angry he _was_ at Cam. Right.

See, he was beginning to get so mad he couldn't even think straight anymore.

In a way this was a small blessing. Not that losing Dustin and Tori to an evil perfume lady was ever a good thing, or losing anyone to _any_ monster was ever a good thing, but the exchange so thoroughly rocked his world that he finally snapped out of the funk he had been dragged into as soon as he digested the whole Cam-saying-dude-and-totally-meaning-it thing started happening and went back to doing his freaking _job_. His entire afternoon had been spent in a confused daze where his eyes processed everything that was going on but his brain was stirring up a traffic jam because of its inability to make sense of it. The only thing he really noticed was how upset Dustin was getting about the entire affair, so Shane had chosen to focus on comforting _him_ as opposed to puzzling out the riddle that was Cam the surfer dude.

So the green ranger couldn't totally take the blame for this, Shane supposed. He _should've_ expected something like this was going to happen. He _should've_ been prepared, he _should've_ watched Cam closer, he _should've_ been watching Dustin's back...

But what was done was done, and the worst part was that Hunter didn't even look remotely surprised by this, which meant the blond had smelled something fishy from the start but hadn't acted on it. Something about the way the crimson ranger carried his shoulder's told Shane that he was just as miffed about losing Dustin and Tori as Shane was (were it possible) and they would probably have a jolly good time beating themselves up over it later.

_Later_, as in, not _now_.

Now Shane had some unpleasant business to attend to, like delivering a smack down to the one ranger he'd been mildly avoiding for the past few weeks.

Which would have been a lot more successful if said ranger showed any sign of caring, or even _listening_.

This was not sitting well with Shane, this was not even _kind've _sitting well with Shane. Cam wasn't even listening, he didn't even care, he was just lying there, completely unaffected, and for once Hunter had to play the cool-headed one and keep Shane and Blake from unleashing some serious damage because _this_ was completely unacceptable.

It was almost like Cam had been transformed into another person, except this new person was a complete downgrade in every shape and didn't care about the team or fighting or _Dustin_ (which really riled Shane for reasons he couldn't quite describe) but most of all Cam really didn't seem to care about _him_. Which was a startling realization, and ridiculously self-centered, but the fact still remained. Sure, he and Cam weren't exactly on speaking terms at the moment, but they had always managed to have a very strong working relationship. Cam doled out the facts, Shane doled out the orders, and in the end it all worked out for the best. But _now_ Cam has succumbed to temporary insanity and lost all the…everything they had. Heck, Shane preferred their tense and awkward silences over _this_ mess because at least then they had managed to work as a team and keep everyone happy. And whole. And safe. And _not_ trapped in plastic vials as evil alien perfume.

It was a joke and Shane didn't want to think about (which was how he dealt with the alarming amount of Cam-related problems nowadays) so he lifted the burden off and slipped into the ever familiar "leader mode", choosing to pull all his focus on the simple task of saving Dustin and Tori.

He would leave Sensei to deal with Cam, or Hunter, since he seemed so fond of being a shoulder to cry on, or maybe he would grow a spine and finally confront Cam like he had so many times before the green ranger started dating his best friend. Ultimately, it didn't matter. That was something that had to be dealt with later.

Right now he had bigger and more important fish to fry.

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Endnotes:

Hey all, schools started back up again and I finally moved back into my dorm! I have no idea what this will do to the update schedule but I'll try to keep it every one to two weeks. It shouldn't take longer than that, unless I'm dealing with a _particularly_ mean plot bunny.

Originally I _did_ write an extra section for Blake, but I ultimately cut it because it seemed unnecessary, he was just kind've elaborating Shane's feelings a little (minus the Cam stuff).

However, if you would like to read it just send me a message and I'll be happy to share the deleted scene.

Thank you, thank you, thank you to the tenth power of a million for all of your reviews! , welcome to the fold, I'm glad you like it! Rogue Ranger (don't worry, if I'm still writing this by spring break I'll keep going until it's finished, and just revise up to that point), and thank you for always sticking with me and giving me feedback, seriously, you've reviewed every chapter _and_ you even read stories in a fandom you don't even _know_. You are freaking awesome, and you always make me smile (and I mean that as un-creepily as I can say it). RAWR, I deliver Cyber Cam unto you! I can only hope this will appease your awesomeness and whimsy! And finally ValkyrieNyght, because I always give you like an inch and you come back with a mile of genius that makes me re-think _most_ of what I've written. And I could never hate you for having an opinion, because you are awesomesauce (and I'm glad you started writing, if you ever venture into power rangers I'll be sure to hit you up!).

If that is enough exclamation marks for now, I believe I will draw these endnotes to a close.

Until next time.


	37. Facade

Chapter 37

Facade

I don't own Jekyll and Hyde, and I definitely don't own David Hasselhoff. Nor do I want to.

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Alright, he was angry. Shane could admit that; hell they were all pretty angry. Blake looked like he was pretty much two levels of affronted above everyone else present (with the exclusion of Cam, the real Cam that is, but Shane would get back to that later) and Hunter was doing that thing were he was simmering with rage but was only allowing _just_ a little bit to seep through, like a terrifying taste of the untapped fury that was boiling beneath the surface.

And Shane was mad, but he had switched targets from what he was mad about three seconds ago and had shifted from a nicely conjured-up fury into a more irksome, perturbed state and the sudden change wasn't really doing his nerves justice.

Still, freaking _clones_.

He should've seen this crap coming, he really should have. If Lothor's monster were liable to listen (because she was probably just around the corner) he would've called for a time out so he could go and smash his head against the wall a couple of times at the utter stupidity of it all. By the time that urge had passed and explanations were handed out, Shane had discovered that yeah, he was still angry because it really_ was_ Cam's fault. This had been major ball dropage, not a mild fumble, but complete and total _"I lost the ball in an alternate deminsion, oops!"_ kind of lapse of judgment/blatant failure that was going to give them all stomach ulcers one day.

When this was over he was going down to Ninja Ops and doing a thorough sweep to remove all alcoholic beverages or any other questionable products because there was no way in _hell_ Cam came up with this idea sober.

It was just too…

Shane didn't even bother contemplating the possibility that he had, because seriously, his brain, kind've crying right now.

And he had really wanted this to be Lothor's fault, because if it was Lothor's fault he could clap Blake on the back and let him really cut loose and they could all joke about it later but no, Cam had simply lost control (How did that even happen? And how had the apocalypse not started because of it?) of his cyber duplicate (And why the hell did he make a copy of _himself_? He couldn't make someone up to prevent these kind of shenanigans from happening? No one would have cared if Sally Madeupname started running amuck. He had practically invited fate to smack them around a bit).

So, quick recap of the ten seconds ago, everyone was mad at Cam. Now, a quick recap of _three_ seconds ago, and everyone was _still_ mad at Cam.

You had to be a certain kind of _special_ to manage to pull that off, you really did.

It was unanimously decided in the very brief silent ninja-eye communication that they would all rag on Cam for this later (_thoroughly_), after the day had been saved and they retrieved their damsels and everyone could go home happy, except Cam, because he was going to be put in the metaphorical time out. There were other angry rants to be thought out, other flaws and maws and _"oh-my-gods"_ to be had but the perfume lady showed back up and they _were_ in charge of saving the world so they begrudgingly went back to doing that.

But Cam was still stupid.

…even if he technically wasn't.

That should be far less infuriating than it actually was.

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There was nothing _quite_ like being the undisputed object of group resentment. There was no rehearsal to the simultaneous looks of disfavor, and were it not aimed at _him_, Cam would have applauded Shane, Hunter, and Blake's dedication to expressing their displeasure. Pointing out that their attempts would forever pale in comparison to his own self loathing would only serve to antagonize them further; and while he was one for efficient living, he figured he could allow this exercise in excessive emoting. At least as excessive as they were willing to be without someone _dying_, which to the untrained eye didn't vastly differ from their usual, in Dustin terms, "angry faces."

Said yellow ranger and Tori were much more forgiving than the others, choosing to find humor in his experiment-gone-astray instead of anger. While they had yet to fill him in on the exact details of Cyber Cam's performance he had a distinct feeling he was, how do you say it, a bit of a tool. That was if Dustin's timid yet persistent clinging was any indication. Once his boyfriend discovered he would not turn him away (On discovering Cyber Cam's reluctance at intimate interaction Cam was both grateful and infuriated, more for the effects than the actual action) Dustin had perked up immediately, defending his intentions and shooting threatening glances in Blake's direction clearly expressing his disapproval for harm coming in Cam's direction which was…quite a nice change, compared to the rest of the day.

Cam had almost forgotten to look sorry after that, slipping on a humble mask when the threats of a smile tugged at the corner of his lips.

It couldn't be helped, Dustin simply made things better.

Tori had a handle on Blake and she guided him out the door, promising a quiet evening alone and successfully taking care of the greatest of the offended parties. Luckily by this point Shane and Hunter had sensed that further criticism would be a waste as Cam's focus had come and gone. Eventually they made their exit as well, Shane sending him one final glance over his shoulder as they leave.

There was something hidden there, something that Cam would probably never be able to discern, and his stomach dropped out for a second, the haze of Dustin momentarily drowned out in a second of unrestrained clarity. In that second the world was simply what it was, no romantic euphoria, no stress from before or after, it was simply cold, reality, everything just existing.

Shane looked away and the moment ended, and Cam forced Dustin back into his world.

Bright, glowing, wonderful Dustin.

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As far as days went that one had been a long one, and despite the fact they hadn't actually done that much fighting Shane was glad for it to be over. In fact he had been so relieved to have finally discovered the atrocity that had been the motivation for the majority of the unrest in his team that he had gladly accepted Hunter's invitation for pizza over at his place which…should have seemed a lot weirder than it _was,_ but he was never one to deny pizza and he could really use the distraction.

From the judging look Hunter spared them all before making his offer, eyes locked hard on his, Shane was willing to bet this was his reasoning behind as well. It wasn't until later, when they had actually gotten settled in (alone because Blake was re-pledging his love to Tori over a "celebratory" dinner that was repeatedly denied as a date that was totally a date) that Shane began to question his choice of action. He had no read on Hunter, who was occupied by scouring the kitchen for clean drinking glasses. But if the familiar sag of his shoulders was anything to go by Shane would say that he was about as relaxed as the crimson ranger ever allowed himself to be. The tan teen took a page from his book and sagged into the ratted couch, boneless, pushing away his worries for now.

After all, they would still be there later.

When he opened his eyes again Hunter was putting down two of his successfully acquired cups brimming with soda, they thudded against the cheap coffee table with practiced carelessness. The foam tilted precariously but sloshed back in before it could spill over the edge, and left the top murky but the sides clean. If Shane wasn't so tired he would have nagged Hunter about how perfectly he managed his attempts at being casual, but his head hurt so instead he just sent the blond an appreciative look because he _knew_ that the other had probably practiced something as small as almost spilling drinks for an unnecessarily long amount of time and _someone_ should acknowledge it.

Or maybe he was just getting paranoid.

Doubtful.

Hunter ignored his courtesy because he was Hunter, and Shane just sighed and reached for his glass, careful not to jar the cheap plastic. The crimson ranger followed in suit, though the relaxed air was kind of ruined by his undisguised staring as he took a sip of his own drink, thoroughly examining all that was Shane over the lip of his glass.

So much for this being purely a distraction.

Hunter was completely unapologetic when Shane finally met his inquisitive gaze; like the red ranger was aware he had other motives for this little rendezvous and he respected Shane too much to try and put up a front that said otherwise which was…refreshing. He had to take a moment to appreciate the honesty that was being shown here, though things like "Hunter" and "honesty" and "nice" weren't something he had ever come to expect to come together in his mind, but there it was.

"So," Hunter began when it became obvious that Shane's not in a particularly chatty mood, "Are we going to talk about this or what?"

He tilted his head innocently and the red ranger took a moment to hate him for the lack of specifics. Or maybe it was because of the lack of necessity for being specific because Shane was completely aware of what he was referring to, he just didn't want to talk about it.

Shane frowned and made a disinterested noise into his drink, using it as a distraction until he could think of a polite way to tell Hunter to shove it. Just because they'd been hanging out for a couple of days didn't give him personal access to all of Shane's inner workings. He was _not_ going to allow this to turn this into some sort of feeling fest so Hunter could psychoanalyze him for "the good of the team".

He could forget it.

Shane promised this to himself a few extra times just for good measure before he glanced back over in the blond's direction, though it turned out he must not have been that subtle with what was running through his mind because it looked like super-crying- heart-to-heart was the last thing Hunter wanted to do either.

He let out a laugh before he could think too hard about it and Hunter glared at him in retaliation, looking refreshingly awkward as his fingers tap against the edge of his cup. It _could_ be an act, but by this point in their relationship Shane was going to give Hunter the benefit of the doubt because you could only save a guys life _so_ many times before the whole _"suspicion of screwing someone over for personal amusement"_ became out of line. Strangely enough, Hunter was legitimately trying to be helpful. He saw a problem and was trying to address it before things got out of hand (as they tended to do when it came to their team, because they were just especially incompetent like that).

Granted, it wasn't in an area he was really comfortable with, but he was trying.

Shane didn't know whether he should be disturbed that his state of being seemed so dire that _Hunter_ felt the need to have a heart-to-heart or if he should be touched, so he tried for a medium ground that allowed him to accept Hunter's…care but still play on the defensive because…

Eh, old habits die hard.

"There's nothing to talk about." Which wasn't going to serve as a very strong point in the argument so he decided to compromise and go with, "I'm fine."

Because he was totally fine. See, this was his "fine" face. It _may_ look a lot like his regular brooding face but it was completely different because he was fine therefore he could only have a "fine" face on and-

Hunter raised a single eyebrow at him, a look that completely called him out on his bull and Shane averted his eyes for a moment so he could focus intently on not-squirming.

"I do believe your pants are on fire," the blond murmured, joke enough of a deviation from his normal behavior that Shane looked back again, pondering the possibilities of a second cyber duplicate. Hunter had enough decency to feel embarrassed by his awful ploy as well and he distracted himself with a sip of his drink, tips of his ears burning. And Shane did _not _stare at them until Hunter snapped his head back in his direction, annoyed by all the not-staring he was doing.

It was almost like backwards-land.

It was his turn to look abashed and he gingerly coughed into his hand, scrambling for a comeback.

"What are you five?"

He felt the retaliation because he was still not looking Hunter's way, and a crumpled up napkin bounced off the side of his head. By the time he looked up Hunter was back to looking completely innocent, if mildly peeved.

"Cam," Hunter explained, impatient with Shane's stonewalling and the red ranger went still, focusing on the back of his hand. "Dustin freaking out I understand, but you were-"

Shane cut him off before he could get too deep into what was clearly none of his business. "I'm the leader-"

And Hunter picked up the slack, cutting in gracefully. "You were way past a leader's concern-"

Shane didn't want to hear this; he shouldn't have to explain this. "He's my friend-"

More disbelieving looks, a quick shake of the head. "Yeah, you were past 'friend' angsting too."

"Says you," Shane spat, all that anger dragging itself back up to the surface.

Why did he agree to come here?

Hunter looked as peeved as he was, frustrated by the lack of _feeling_ pouring out of Shane's heart.

"You can lie to them if you want," he whispered, venom in his tone, "but you and I both know-"

"So you get to call the shots now?" Shane barked back, rising to his feet and he really should stop and get a hold of himself, he really should focus but it was just so _nice_ not to keep it bottled in all the time.

The crimson ranger changed to higher ground as soon as he did, never allowing them to break eye contact. "What the hell is your problem?"

And that was the million dollar question wasn't it? That was the big one, the jackpot, the grand key in unlocking all the anger that was Shane and the words spill out before he could even think of how to properly express them, tumbling down in an unorganized mob of chaos.

"I couldn't _do_ anything!" He finally yelled, fists clenched so tightly into his sides that it hurt. "And it's not that I couldn't foresee this happening or that I couldn't stop Dustin and Tori from getting kidnapped. It's that I finally thought Cam and I were family and he threw it all away! And now he won't even talk to me or ask for help or whatever the hell Cam would ever need and then things like _this_ happen and I can't just reach out and talk to him because apparently that's not allowed anymore!"

He gulped a few quick breaths and shook his head angrily, turning back to Hunter with bright eyes.

"All I would have needed to do was talk to that stupid replicant for like five seconds, max, and I would have known it wasn't him. But all I could do was sit back and think that maybe this was just some crisis he was having, and that Dustin would have to help him through it and…" he fumbled, suddenly spent and out of words and he looked at Hunter desperately to see if the blond could make any sense of it.

And then he had to snicker, because the look on Hunter's face was highly reminiscent of someone getting an icy bucket of water dumped on them, sudden and unexpected and a little bit confused.

Shane was tired enough to admit that it was a little endearing.

The snicker turned into a laugh which earned him a full fledged glare, and Shane plopped himself back down on the couch, more relaxed than he had been in days. Sure, he could look at this as a horrific mistake because never in a million years had he suspected that he would be unloading onto Hunter of all people, but he felt strangely safe.

Even, dare he say, at home.

If it _was_ backwards land, it wasn't that bad a place to be.

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In retrospect the whole new-Cam-not-being-old-Cam thing kind've made a lot of sense. In fact, given the way things usually go with them (and the fact that he was evil alien perfume only about an hour ago could only support this) Dustin probably _should_ have assumed that new Cam was really an out of control cyber duplicate that was grasping to freedom with its last dying breath. His death, in this case, being his pre-reprogrammed state. Turned out once real Cam got his hands free his cyber alter-ego never stood a chance and was immediately sent back to Ninja Ops for a serious overhaul.

The world thanked him for this service.

Dustin really couldn't find it in him to be unhappy when it was all was said and done. Maybe he should be, because it wasn't all that long ago the world was an incredibly unpleasant place in Dustin-land but he just…he was happy he had real Cam back. Real Cam who still liked him and held his hand and was lovably dorky and didn't say "dude" unless he was using it to verbally smack down Hunter and wore terrible Hawaiian shirts (at least the few that said crimson ranger hadn't stolen) and most importantly really, really, really liked Dustin.

And Dustin really, really liked him back.

Ergo, no more sadness.

And maybe that was the wrong way to go about things, because all those doubts and bad feelings did stir up from _somewhere_ but the fact was it wasn't because of _his_ Cam. All Dustin had was the team and Sensei and Liv, and he didn't bother himself with technicalities or unnecessary emotional baggage because life was short and being alone was worse. Besides, everything Cyber Cam made him feel was…what Cyber Cam made him feel. What was the point of worrying over that? Like, if Dustin was walking down the street and some homeless person yelled out some disparaging comment about he and Cam's relationship Dustin wouldn't sweat it, because he was a homeless person and _not_ Cam and _he_ was the only one who really mattered at the end of the day.

Which wasn't how other people operate, but Dustin was far too special to function like "normal" people who probably grew up coloring inside the lines, so he was cool with it.

In fact, he was cool with it after seeing Cyber Cam up in running after the mission debrief, and he was cool with it when Cam totally started making up for whatever he missed (completely earning his genius stripes when he figured by all their unhappy faces that no goodness came of evil Cyber Cam) with epic snuggling, and he was cool with it when epic snuggling grew a little more heated into the _really_ good kind of snuggling.

And then Dustin had to go and think that the evening couldn't get much better than this and just invited the universe to seek him out and spit in his face.

And there was _no_ good way to spit in someone's face.

There was only awful spitting, and _ah-my-face-my-face-my-face_ spitting, and as far as metaphors go, this was the latter.

Because while Dustin was expecting a lot of things (most of which had to do with Cam losing his shirt…okay, _all_ of them had to do with Cam losing his shirt), the sprinkler system turning on and unleashing a torrential downpour of liquid hatred was _not_ one of them and after that Dustin was decidedly _not_ cool.

Maybe it was because he had been using his new relationship with Cam to get out of "attack fear" duty with Tori, or maybe it was because it was such a surprise, or maybe he was just regressing, but the suddenness of being pulled from absolute paradise to immense watery misery threw Dustin back into a place he had _not_ wanted to go. It had to be the surprise thing, or the amount, because he wasn't afraid of showers, but now there was water everywhere and it was freaking cold and his clothes were soaked and he couldn't breathe-hecouldn'tbreathe-hecouldn'tbreathe-and-

It shut off almost as quickly as it started, and Cam was already across the room grumbling something about "last acts of rebellion" and swearing to figuratively lobotomize Cyber Cam so stuff like this couldn't happen anymore. Dustin could only lay on the now-soaked bed feeling slightly paralyzed and try to remind himself how to breathe. It was just as difficult as it usually was, after this happened, and his heart was pounding so loudly that he could barely hear Cam's muttering, let alone register it, but he thought Cam might have mentioned something about this happening earlier when he tried to escape and that he was really glad he waterproofed everything and Dustin could only stare numbly in shock and wait for his heart to slow down before it decided to explode.

He managed to get out that first, difficult gulp of air, and it was all gaspy and how he imagined a fish would sound or maybe he only thinks that because he was sputtering like a fish or maybe that was the wrong species or turn-of-phrase entirely. Of course that would be when Cam chose to finally look over his shoulder, probably to joke about something in that quiet humor only Dustin got to see and he hated himself even more because he _loved_ those moments and now he had to ruin it by looking like he was just electrocuted or something.

Which, incidentally, was what started this whole mess in the first place.

Cam was by him in a flash, or a jiffy, or a jiffified flash and he immediately wrapped his arms around him, pulling him close and Dustin took another shuddering breath, curling in towards his warmth. He listened quietly to the soft _thud-thud_ of Cam's heart and latched onto the rhythm, slowing down and using Cam to anchor himself back to…himself, he guessed.

Even if he wasn't the biggest fan of himself right now.

They stayed like that for a long time, or what at least felt like a long time, and Dustin sucked in as many of those precious seconds of that calm as he could because a storm was a-brewing and he _knew_ this was going to come back to bite badly, and for once that day he really, _really _hated Cyber Cam with every fiber of his being.

Despite the fact that he had entirely, unarguably brought this on himself.

His breathing came back in shaky gulps, the air deciding that it could finally play nice again and he pleasantly tried to distract himself from his self-inflicted crises by imagining the air as a giant stuffed teddy bear that was willing to give him some giant teddy bear huggin' love. It was a nice idea, but it didn't really work because he was still painfully aware of _every single_ drop of water that trailed across his skin, taunting his inability to act like a freaking ranger.

There was this distinct silence that filled the room once he regained what little control he normally had, and he kept his eyes glued to his lap, knowing that the time he feared most had finally arrived.

He had put it off long enough; it was time to face the music.

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Endnotes:

Looks like our very first cliffhanger ladies and gentlemen! At least, if memory serves me right.

Unfortunately I will not be able to update for at least two months because of my scholastic obligations. You have my most sincere apologies.

…

…

…

Just kidding.

In unrelated news I'm thinking about changing this from a Cam/Dustin/Shane story to a Cam/Dustin, Shane/Hunter story.

…I know, I know, stop throwing things at me! This is something that's been bugging me for awhile, or at least since chapter 16, when I realized that Hunter's not as deliciously hateable as he once was. When I began the story I didn't care for him (blasphemy, I know) but now he's grown on me. As you can see, I have already changed the character filters to be truer to the story. I tried guys, I honestly did, but I can only ignore the story's demands for so long before things start getting forced and quality goes down. I'm sorry for false advertising. I know _I_ hate it when author's change their mind after promising one thing and I tried to make it work and while a threesome is doable, a foursome is probably pushing it.

Moral of the story is, go with your gut.

That doesn't mean I'm not resolving the whole Cam/Shane business I've managed to stir up, I'm just not going to delve deeply into it.

For those of you who are still reading, let's get on to the chapter!

My sister is actually the one suggest the title of this chapter, (and delayed its posting by one day by not being home to beta, how _dare_ she have a life) pointing out that both Shane and Dustin were putting up a front when clearly, all was not well.

I think it works.

As always, a great many thanks to my reviewers! RAWR, I hope a little bit of cliffhanger is enough to drag you back in! More exclamation marks and hearts your way! ValkyrieNyght, thank you for your numerous and supremely effective kicks in the pants, you seem to always know when I'm starting to get a little far off the path and seem more then willing to set me back on track. You to Rogue, I already changed the summary. Thanks for helping me worth through my inner-blonde.

That's all for now folks.

Until next time.


	38. Poor Wand'ring One

Chapter 38

Poor Wand'ring One

I don't own The Pirates of Penzance. But if I did, that would be awesome. Oh, and if you're going to listen to it, youtube Helen Donaldson's version because she is a _beast_.

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Dustin could probably wait for Cam to start prodding, whenever he was done mentally evaluating or doing whatever he had silently been doing, pondering, thinking, using that genius of his to silently take Dustin apart bit-by-bit to find the piece that was broken. He could wait but he was just… a little _tired_ of waiting. Because this conversation was going to end up in the same place, that was no question. At the end of the day Dustin would be unmasked as not only a liar, but as weak and all that...sorrow that he had worked up earlier over a Cam that wasn't even his came back with a vengeance, this time just deserved.

That didn't mean he had to meet the other's eyes however, he just…couldn't.

He leaned heavily against Cam's chest, the tech carefully combing his fingers through the brunette's curly hair in a soothing fashion, making the yellow ranger feel worse than he already had.

No, that was it, no more pity. It was talking time.

Cam deserved that much.

"I'm afraid of water."

He didn't try to soften the blow or make excuses or slide it in gently, he just said it, said the thing that had weighed him down for months now, the thing that was slowly killing him inside.

Cam stilled but didn't say anything, probably waiting for Dustin to resort to his normal self and start babbling out the reasons and his fears and his concerns in an unorganized mess but he just…it wasn't in him. There wasn't any way to justify it, and even if there _was_ he didn't deserve it because that didn't change the fact he had lied to Cam. And he _had_ lied, that whole, "withholding super big important things from the people you care about" thing totally counted as lying, you couldn't even try to slip that past anyone. It was just how it went.

His throat constricted and he took a shuddering breath, trying to hold it together until he was finished. He swallowed quickly, blinking back the heat in his eyes.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you," he whispered, voice cracking near the end, and then he pulled away. If he stayed Cam would feel obligated to comfort him, and he shouldn't, right now he deserved to feel angry and yell-y and Dustin deserved to be curled up in a corner where no one could see him. He would probably have to leave first, because it was very hard to yell at someone who was already crying. Unless you were absolutely heartless, but despite what others might think that wasn't Cam.

A hand wrapped around his elbow to pull him back but he shook it off, pressing his hands against his eyes to stop premature leaking.

"I'll come back," he promised, sounding _oh-_so assured in his barely audible voice, "after I-" and since the rest of that sentence was _"go and cry somewhere"_ the first whimper broke through and he had to take several deep breaths before he could continue.

Somewhere beyond the safety of his hands Cam was moving, maybe in front of him, and then the tech's hands were back, one against his waist while the other sought out his shoulder.

"Dustin," he couldn't tell how the other sounded because he was just barely listening, "- talk to me."

He shook his head, not that he couldn't talk (well, right now he kind've couldn't) but he had to go and come back so they could be on even ground and this would be a lot easier if Cam could just see that. He tried to say it but all he could manage was a gasp and Cam was back, arms around him, firmly pulling Dustin's head against his chest and he tried to tell him that this wasn't right, to ask him why and…

He was so _weak_.

He couldn't fight it, even if Cam didn't know he was supposed to be angry yet; he didn't even bother trying to pull away again because it had hurt so much the first time. And Cam, stupid _Cam_ just kept running his fingers through his hair, murmuring words that blended together while Dustin gave in and released his first sob, burrowing into the green ranger as though he had never tried to leave. He _should_ be better than this.

But he just _wasn't._

Eventually Cam led them somewhere, Dustin didn't really know or care, all he could do was follow. They halted gently, Cam taking away one of his arms for a moment and coming back with…a towel. A big, warm, somehow still dry towel because _of course_ Cam would have emergency towels and _of course_ he would share them because he was stupidly thoughtful and kind and caring and smart and-

It _hurt_, knowing that he failed someone so great this badly.

He didn't deserve Cam; no one did, but him least of all. He pulled the towel tight around him, using it as an excuse to pull away (and it hurt less because he knew he deserved it, knew it was necessary) and began to dry off as best he could. It was all so logical. He was afraid of water, he got wet, therefore the first thing to do was stop that "water" business from happening. Dry em' up real good. He pulled the rough material over his head, rubbing it a little harder than necessary. He needed to regroup.

The towel dropped down to his shoulders and he finally risked a look at Cam, his first since his…breakdown began.

He was still wet, dripping slightly, clothes clinging to him (he had a towel but he was too focused on Dustin to use it). His eyes were worried. Worried and concerned and probably confused and Dustin pressed the heel of hand against his right eye _hard_ because he did not need to start that back up again.

"I'm sorry," he whispered again, voice gravely. "I should have-" his throat cut in, angry, and he snapped his mouth shut, and took deep centering breaths, focusing on the floor. A cup filled with water snuck into his vision what must have been a few minutes later and he accepted gingerly, taking a grateful gulp. He downed the rest of it quickly and wiped the back of his mouth, one hand firmly keeping the towel wrapped around his shoulders while the other placed the cup back on the counter, avoiding Cam's eyes for the second time.

It was like one of the world's worst games.

"This shouldn't be a problem," he exclaimed when the silence became too much, "I should be better than this, I should be stronger-" he trailed off again, fists clenched in the rough fabric of the towel. He had said this to himself a million times, over and over again, why couldn't he say it now? Why couldn't he just get the stupid words out of his mouth?

Cam's hands were back, warm and grasping the sides of his face, turning his head to meet the unyielding, caring gaze. Cam tipped his forehead against Dustin's, dropping one of his hands so that he could wrap it around his waist. The words dried up in the yellow ranger's mouth, taken back by the…concern…ferocity (only Cam could manage both) and he wondered if it was finally yelling time.

Except it turned out that it wasn't.

"Fear," Cam began in the same soft, confident tone that he used when explaining something to Dustin, effectively enrapturing him, "is illogical."

The words _"No, duh"_ popped into mind but Cam continued before he could even think about voicing them.

"It is an emotional response, and like _all_ emotional responses it is difficult, if not impossible to put rhyme or reason to." He halted to tilt his head, gently rubbing his thumb across Dustin's cheek. "I have a great deal of experience in agonizing over…emotional matters that were simply beyond my control."

A fondness passed through the other's eyes and despite the guilt Dustin should be feeling warmth flitted around inside him. Cam smiled knowingly, but wasn't finished.

"Fear is unavoidable," he explained, and the sadness overcame that tiny little reverie. Cam's grip tightened, because he knew, because he _always_ knew. He refused to let Dustin's eyes wander and firmly grabbed his chin, tilting his head up. "It is how we approach it that makes the difference."

And he wanted to cry again, because how he had approached his fear so far _sucked_, but Cam wouldn't have it. He closed the distance between them, gifting Dustin with a reassuring kiss that thoroughly rocked the mechanic's world.

When he pulled back he was smiling again, arms locked around Dustin's waist.

"I assume," he said, head tilted in his _"I am deducing many great things up in here" _way that made Dustin feel giggly inside, "that you chose to…withhold this out of shame?"

Dustin winced, rubbing awkwardly at of his face at the blunt truth of it all. He nodded quickly, plucking at his lip. "I thought I was failing you guys."

Well, he _was_, but he knew that was the last thing Cam wanted to hear. But the green ranger had physic mind-reading abilities and figured out the unspoken part of his sentence anyway, frowning and eyes insistent as he leaned in close.

"You did _not_," he assured, so confident and resolute that Dustin forgot how to breathe for a moment…again.

That was becoming an awfully nasty habit of his.

"I…" he trailed off, wanting desperately to say something but unsure of exactly _what_. He had been so sure this was going to end in anger and yelling and maybe even break-up that he hadn't thought out how to take on any alternative. His plan had simply been to get over his stupid fear and then forget about it forever. This Cam being awesome thing was leaving him with real unsure footing.

So Cam, being Cam, went ahead and filled in the rest of his sentence with a kiss (because that was _always_ the best way to emphasize your point) and Dustin sighed into it, finally giving into the maybe-happy vibe of this unorthodox confession.

He was all for where this was going.

"…though I must confess," Cam muttered as he pulled away, leaving a pouting Dustin, "when exactly...?"

Dustin nodded, knowing where he was going. "Toxipod's island. Blake paralyzed me and hurled me into the ocean."

He cringed as the memory flashed back, though Cam simply being present made it a lot better. At least, reminded him he wasn't alone.

Cam frowned, mind occupied with memory lane (which would be nice but there was better things to be doing right now).

"The pool party?" He asked, brows furrowed, and Dustin cut back in, shrugging.

"That's where I figured it out."

To think if he had just avoided pools forever he would have been fine.

And the ocean.

And his bathtub.

And rebelling cyber replicants that liked to take control of sprinkler systems.

See, if he had just avoided all those he probably would have been golden.

Cam probably had more questions (well, he _always_ had questions, but like…never mind) but Dustin was tired and wet and getting kind of impatient so he decided to put his boyfriend's scientific brain to work and focus on one of their past experiments. Dustin had asked the green ranger if you really could kiss something better. They had done a _lot_ of testing, but Cam said that the more data they had, the more accurate they could be.

So he would answer all those fear-related questions later; right now he wanted to do some major data gathering.

Smiling, Dustin ditched the towel around his shoulders and grabbed onto Cam's collar, pulling him forward into a rough kiss.

Things weren't perfect, he was still afraid, he had still lied, but now Cam knew the truth and the world hadn't ended so he figured the least he could do was take a moment to enjoy the day and not wallow completely in despair.

If he really wanted to he could do that later, but now…

Now it was time to "experiment".

You just never knew how exciting science could be until you really got hands-on.

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Be careful what you wish for was a stupid turn of phrase. If a person _really_ had some deep hidden desire that they obsessed over they probably would have spent a great deal of time thinking about the implementation of their perfect wish. Seriously, if it was always on their minds they had to have at least put a _little_ thought into the ramifications, both good and bad, that were bound to occur when they finally got their "wish" granted.

And as much as Hunter would _like_ to think he was good at logic and planning and that his years of ninja training were enough to prepare him for anything and that he really _had_ been expecting some kind of strong emotional response, he honestly couldn't say that any of _that_ had prepared him for _this_ particular response.

Which was also stupid, in the way that having theory and watching it get destroyed by reality was stupid. Or maybe that was just his bitterness talking.

Well, it wasn't like his minimal whining was going to help with the matter at hand, but still, ninja angst.

It was like regular angst, but with _ninjas_.

Which despite his complete submersion into the culture and repeated exposure to the point that the bizarrely abnormal had become run-of-the-mill, was still a lot of fun to joke about.

But that was _also_ not the point.

"So…" Hunter began steadily, once Shane had ceased his laughing (it wasn't _that_ funny), "what I'm getting from this," and what everyone should be getting from this if they weren't so busy taking interest in butterflies and cyber duplicants and _not_ dating people, "is that you and Cam are experiencing some relationship problems."

He could tell by the growing frown on Shane's face that he probably could have worded that in a more delicate way that would have better appeased the leader's manliness, but that was an awful lot of effort and so far being anything _but_ blunt and direct really didn't work for any of these people so Hunter put on his _"just suck it up"_ face and decided to continue before the other ranger could think of complaining about it and pull them off track again.

"I'm also going to go ahead and assume," and he already knew this because the forced hang-outs were not done on a whim, "that this probably started immediately after he and Dustin began dating."

And yep, they were now in full-fledged frowny-world. At least Shane had stopped glaring; it wasn't like Hunter's the one who started this.

Okay, in a way he kinda did with the whole making-out-with-Dustin thing, but how was _he_ supposed to know that was going to be so poorly received?

Shane nodded absently, running a hand through his hair and releasing a sorrowful sigh, which was outstandingly expressive for him, before giving Hunter a sad look. The look in his eyes was a familiar one, and it confirmed two things. One, that Shane didn't know what he did to earn the cold shoulder from Cam and two, that he _wanted_ to do something about it, but wasn't sure if it would make it worse by doing so. He probably thought in some bizarre way that this null-contact thing was exactly what Cam wanted and the very act of confronting him about it would like…show his disrespect…or something.

_Uh_, who is he kidding, Hunter had no idea why Shane hadn't just grown a pair and confronted Cam about it. It would have been faster and probably a lot less stressful. Then again, it would have also probably been a good way to disrupt how the team functioned, at least for a little bit, so Hunter supposed he _kind've_ understood why Shane was being all noble and self-sacrificing. Unless the problem would only get worse with time, in which case he was only being _stupid_.

But, you know, one thing at a time.

Shane cleared his throat suddenly, breaking Hunter out of his reverie.

"I don't know what I did," he murmured, plucking at the material of his shorts, and _uh_, this is what _he_ must have sounded like that one time he complained to Sensei Omino after Blake refused to talk to him for a week. It turned out he had accidentally broken one of his…he couldn't even remember what it was now, but eventually he had gotten sick of it and forced Blake into a headlock until he started talking again.

Maybe Shane should try that.

There was another desolate sigh, and Hunter forced himself back on track, reevaluating his goals for this particular chat.

Goal number one, make Shane feel better.

The goal was pretty broad in itself, vague, but doable. All he had to do was let Shane unwind, or cut loose, or just talk it out, or do whatever he needed to do to feel better about it. Hunter thought about it and studied intently, rubbing his chin as Shane stared dejectedly at his shoes, seemingly dead to the world. Okay, so they were done shouting. Apparently that earlier outburst was as much unloading as Hunter was going to get today, which meant he had to work a little harder.

What did Shane need?

Did he need to talk it out? Work through it? Retrace his past steps to find out what went wrong?

Hunter stared at him some more, as though the answer would suddenly write itself across Shane's face.

_If only._

When the miserable silence continued he opted for some minor prodding before they went to the more drastic measure of hunting Cam down and sitting on him until he explained himself.

"Can you think of anything you might have done-"

And apparently that was enough to start him up again because Shane was on his feet in an instant, hands running through his hair wildly.

"That's just it, I've been thinking about it and I _can't_-" he cut off, partly from frustration and partly from having to glare at the coffee table for having the audacity to come in the way of his shins. "I was taking care of him!" He exclaimed, negotiating the offending table and making it to the safety of the window, something that probably couldn't hurt him. "I made sure he ate, I made sure he was rested, I made sure he bathed…" and pointing out that treating another person like a pet was probably not the best way to win them over wasn't going to win _him_ any points so Hunter kindly kept that to himself, "I even slept with him so he could-"

"Wait," Hunter interrupted, holding up a warning hand as he pinched the bridge of his nose, "I think I'm beginning to see what the problem is."

It was probably the sex thing.

Hunter wasn't surprised that Shane hadn't thought that the friends-with-benefits thing would turn out badly, but he was allowed to insult him for the next _week_ for not thinking that _that _ending and Cam's silence had nothing to do with each other. He didn't even want to try to fathom _what_ the dark-skinned teen's end game had been…unless his goal was to get Cam to loosen up, in which case, he failed considerably. The question of exactly how consensual their meet up had been also came to mind, but he pushed it aside for later, because, you know, one thing at a time.

At least that answered the question of Shane's sexuality. And to think, he had been playing so hard to get.

"So," he asked, rubbing the side of his head exasperatedly, "when did the sex start?"

Not that it was entirely relevant but he honestly wanted to know how big a man whore Cam was turning out to be. Sleeping with Shane, making googly eyes at Dustin, flirting with Hunter, it was a good thing Blake was so blatant with his attraction to Tori or he probably would have been pulled into this mess.

Oddly enough, and despite the fact that he and Shane had a silent agreement to be frank with each other, the red ranger's reaction was incredibly odd, with lots of flailing and falling and wild staring. They both blinked in confusion, clearly missing whatever the other was having issue with.

Shane opened and shut his mouth a couple of times, flat-out gaping before he remembered how to use his vocal cords again.

"What?" he asked, indignant, and Hunter rolled his eyes, unimpressed. "What are you talking about?"

Hunter cocked his head sideways, attempting to discern the motive behind Shane's odd reaction.

"The sex," he reiterated, slow and plain so the other wouldn't get confused. He swore talking to Shane was like talking to a puppy sometimes, you had to be extra nice and patient with them just so you could get them to stop peeing on things. And since he was feeling extra generous he went ahead and retraced his mental connections for him. "I'm pretty sure that's what 'I slept with him' translates to, unless of course, you meant you _literally_ slept _by_ him, but even you're not…" and the words kind've dried up in his mouth because holy hell, that was _exactly_ what Shane meant, and then Hunter had to fight off the very tempting urge to throw his soda at his still in-training ranger-puppy.

It didn't help that Shane was still reeling from the sex comment, but Hunter refused to feel any guilt over the damage because he had brought _that_ down on himself.

Okay, _maybe_ there was a little bit of guilt there so Hunter threw out an attempt to distract Shane from his woes.

"You couldn't think of a better way to phrase that?"

Luckily it worked and Shane was glaring at him in no time, picking himself back off of the floor.

"I thought it was obvious," he groused, brushing off some imaginary dust, "I already told you I'm not gay."

Hunter's fingers twitched and he silently evaluated the pros and cons of throwing the soda. Of _course_ Shane wasn't gay, he only let Dustin hang all over him and slept with Cam and never looked at other girls because he was totally a nice guy.

The worst part of that sentence was that it was entirely plausible despite Hunter's doubts. Still, that was a battle for another day.

Right now they were still on the let's-make-Shane-feel-happy train.

"Whatever," Hunter replied, waving a hand vaguely so they could focus on the more important stuff. "How exactly did you come to this…arrangement?"

Because there was no other word for it, he bet Cam even made up flow charts and diagrams and a schedule or something, or worse, Shane did it for him.

This team was so weird.

Shane took a moment to think of it as he settled back onto the couch, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

"I went to check up on him once and found him passed out over his keyboard so I picked him up and took him to his room so he could get some quality sleep." He paused for a moment, eyes staring off at something into the distance, "When I laid him down he wouldn't let go of my shirt, and when I tried to make him let go…" he trailed off, eyes saddening. "He asked me to stay, in his sleep." He turned to look at Hunter, stupidly caring and strong. "He was so lonely Hunter, I just-"

"Couldn't leave him like that?" Hunter offered, trying not to wince at the cliché. It was unavoidable though, Shane was a walking Boy Scout stereotype. It was like the world had overcompensated for all of Lothor's evil by finding as much excess good there could possibly be and stuffing it all into the red ranger, giving him his _rainbow glitter charm_. It was sickening. Necessary, but gross.

Hunter made a mental note to never get on the other ranger's "to help" list.

Shane nodded, smile in place as though he could read Hunter's thoughts, and the crimson ranger moved on. "And then you kept coming back, whether he wanted it or not?"

Because that was what Shane would do.

"Yeah," he murmured, leaning back.

"But now he has Dustin, so he doesn't need you anymore."

A sadder, more hushed, "Yeah."

Hunter looked at him closely, sensing the defeat. "Do you miss it?"

From what he could tell Shane liked feeling needed and this here, this was the epitome of need. Though beyond that selfish pretense, there was actually a deeper loss. Real mourning over a broken relationship made whatever Shane gained from this experience worthless because at the end of the day, he really cared about Cam. And now not only did Cam no longer need him, apparently he didn't _want_ him either. Or perhaps it was just the opposite, and he wanted him a little _too_ much. Either way that was a conversation he and Cam were going to have to have later.

Meanwhile, outside his head, Shane had started back up again.

"I miss talking to him," he admitted, slowly rubbing the side of his face. "It may have taken awhile, but Cam is my friend."

_Though you thought he was your brother_, Hunter silently added, achingly familiar with a family in mourning.

Shane laughed suddenly, smirking at Hunter sideways. "I can't believe you thought I was having sex with him."

_I can't believe you __**didn't**__ have sex with him_.

It would have made a lot more sense.

Hunter shrugged instead, tilting his head cockily, "It seemed like a reasonable conclusion to draw."

More laughter, "Only because your mind's in the gutter."

Hunter frowned again, tossing another wadded up napkin in the other's direction. He wasn't entirely offended, it seemed the sex shark branding was unavoidable at this point (despite the fact that Cam totally had him beat) so he refused to let it bother him. Besides, it seemed to lift Shane's spirits so he took what he could get. Further progress on this front would be halted until he spoke with Cam, so until then he would have to settle for providing Shane with a happy distraction.

Hunter still wasn't entirely sure _why_, but it felt right, so he didn't worry over it too much.

It was what friends do, right?

Right.

The fact that this would still trouble him for days to come was _also_ something he shouldn't worry about.

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Endnotes:

In which Cam is declared a man whore, Dustin faces the music, and Hunter's a little o_O.

Yeah…I don't know what happened with Hunter this week but he was a blast to write.

A rainbow full of thank you's to my wonderful reviewers! Feel the squee RAWR, feel it! I can only hope that Hunter instigated the best of flailings this chapter! And even attempting to get other people to read this inspires the utmost lurve. Seriously, LURVE, thank you so much! ValkyrieNyght I'm not going to lie after your awesome review I was almost a little afraid to write this chapter for fear that it wouldn't hold up but y'alls reviews got me to push through. Yes, eventually I'll be doing a Shane/Cam scene but it's probably going to farther down the line after the Hunter/Cam scene and the Dustin/Shane scene, but it _will_ happen. And Rogue, this one's for you buddy…

I got to thinking this "this or that" thing was…limiting. Truth is I like both concepts of (Hunter/Shane, Cam/Dustin) and (Shane/Dustin/Cam) and while I lean towards the first one because of plausibility and the fact that everyone gets a happily ever after, I _did_ lay all the ground work for the later pairing. And _because_ Rogue fought for it so passionately, and I have the time, and I'm kind've sick of scrapping at least half of my ideas, I figured, why not just do both?

So I give you, "Any Moment B". This "B" version is going to stick with the Shane/Dustin/Cam pairing. It will be a completely different story, separate from this one, and it will pick up after the events of _this_ "Any Moment's" chapter 36. So now you can pick your side. Or just do both, it's really up to you. I'll be putting it up shortly after I post this chapter.

I figured as long as I don't get confused it shouldn't be a problem.

In other news the next episode coming up is "I love Lothor" which means we be bringing on the love potions! Since possibilities are endless I was wondering what opinions you guys had. Who should get zapped? Who should they "love"?

Any feedback is appreciated.

Until next time.


	39. Spread a Little Sunshine

Chapter 39

Spread a Little Sunshine

I don't own Pippen.

I think I may have catered to the Cam/Hunter fans out there, but it was totally on accident.

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"So," Hunter began, not bothering with simple things like pleasantries or opportunities for Cam to derail the conversation (he couldn't change the subject if Hunter just started in the middle), "I need you and Shane to make up."

The tech graced him with a perturbed look before returning his attention back to the…thingy in his hands, giving it a few well placed stabs (or perhaps executing a very technical procedure that just _looked_ like stabbing) before abandoning his screw driver altogether, reaching for a pair of green handled pliers resting against the table.

Hunter almost sighed in disappointment, choosing instead to throw a glare at the back of the green ranger's head. The least Cam could do was look a _tiny_ bit surprised by his intrusion, or miffed about his comment on other's relationship with a certain red ranger, or _aggravated_ at his standard blunt approach to conversation, or maybe he could have dredged up some of that anger Hunter knew the tech had reserved for him because of the whole made-out-with-_lurve_-of-his-life thing, but this entire cold-shoulder, complete apathy was just kind've insulting.

He thought their relationship was a better than that.

Or worse, if you had to be specific.

He must be losing his touch; usually he could get Cam mad at him with the simple act of being present. Now the green ranger was going to make him put forth some effort.

How awfully inconsiderate of him.

"So," Hunter began _again_, sidling up beside Cam (past experience taught him that the green ranger was very strict about his personal bubble, but Hunter couldn't see any potato salad nearby so he figured he was cool) and leaned past his shoulder, staring at the side of his face intently, "you and Shane…"

He trailed off to allow the part of the green ranger that had that untamable desire to educate the ignorant to take over and fill in the rest, but Cam stubbornly refused, discarding his pliers for a wrench (what the hell was he building?). Hunter stared on for a few more seconds, pondering the ramifications of leaning in closer, but decided not to push his luck. He settled his chin against Cam's shoulder, tilting his head to get a better view of the nuts and bolts of his doo-hicky.

"I'm not going to go away you know," he informed him, tapping the metal lab table impatiently. "I don't have stuff to do."

He had taken care of that. Dustin had ever so helpfully taken over his shift at Storm Chargers (which Blake was going to complain about _forever_ because they could barely make ends meet as it was) and all Hunter had to do was casually mention to Shane that the red ranger and Dustin hadn't gotten a lot of "alone" time (but with much more coddling and definitely no use of the words alone time) and the guy was all over spending time in the shop, doing whatever it was he and Dustin normally did back there. For the longest time Hunter had thought it was making out, but the epic levels of repression streaming off the two of them was enough to disprove_ that _particular theory.

Hunter was tempted to see how far he could push Cam, how long it would take for the other to snap and address his presence so they could put aside their petty squabbles and get down to business. It wasn't fair, why did Cam have to be so easily aggravated? It was both a blessing _and_ a curse. A blessing because it was as amusing as hell to test him. A curse because he was more liable to be punch-y (too much time with Dustin) afterwards. Especially towards Hunter. And it wasn't like the crimson ranger couldn't take another punch to the face, he just didn't want to. Because, well, who liked getting punched in the face?

Did he dare, or did he not?

Was he a man, or a mouse?

How angry would everyone be if _he_ threw the first punch instead?

He could always claim self-defense. Or, intended self defense. Preemptive strikes were never bad in his book but everyone else seemed to favor Cam more nowadays. At least he still had Blake. If Cam every tried to take him the world would have one less green ranger.

Throwing caution to the wind Hunter decided to go for it, sliding carefully behind the tech and purposefully pushing the others foot out (to make his crotch a less tempting target for kicking). He wrapped his arms about Cam's waist, burrowing his head against the other's neck so he could emulate Dustin's cuddling and _not_ because he ever, kind've needed some physical interaction of his own. Not at all. If he did there had to be better ways of getting it. Right now he would probably be better received by a polar bear then he would by Cam.

He smiled excitedly, unable to contain himself. Now Cam would make some witty comment or try to elbow him in the face and then they could fight/exchange words and then he could get closer to achieving his make-Shane-feel-better plan, which was light-years ahead of Shane's make-Cam-feel-better plan in a way that only his awesome could manage.

Or at least that _would've_ been the case, if Cam had reacted…at _all_.

Hunter pulled his head back up to curiously look at the tech who was still…couldn't he just pick a tool and stick with it? What did the wrench ever do to him? If he was so smart why didn't he just invest in a multi-tool?

And why the hell was he still ignoring him?

What did he have to do, start dry humping him? He wasn't that desperate. Really, he could cope, and he wasn't that suicidal either. If Cam wasn't dating Dustin (because he really liked that guy, it was almost impossible not to) Hunter probably would have risked frisking Cam, or groping him, to see how far the silent game could go, but he pretty much at the end of his physical options.

That left plan number two, verbal instigation.

"I'm going to play under the assumption," because no one was telling him anything and he needed to get his info _somehow_, "that you may or may not have strong emotional feelings for our very favorite red ranger."

The only response he received was a momentary delay in Cam's…ratcheting, and immediate tension in his shoulders, but Hunter knew he was right.

It was a bold assumption, but the pieces added up if you took a step back and really looked at the situation. The timing made sense; if Shane really did everything he said he did it was entirely possible for Cam to develop feelings that were stronger than the cozy family vibe Shane had set out to make. Hunter couldn't blame the tech, Shane was a naturally likeable guy and he had been practically forcing himself on Cam. Through his screwed up understanding he was helping keep Cam human, keep Cam healthy because he cared, and Cam took that caring and saw something deeper. Hunter didn't feel like delving into the territory of Cam always being gay as to Cam just loving Dustin and Shane, that was the green ranger's personal business, but he did need to establish some ground rules.

"And since you're not talking, I'm going to assume that I'm right," he murmured, locking his arms tighter around Cam's waist, a warning or a wake up call.

Cam snapped his head to the side instantly, not intimidated by blond's closeness. "That's none of your-"

"See," Hunter interrupted, knowing full well the next word was business, "that's where you're wrong."

Cam glared, eyes narrowing in controlled rage that would have been a lot more impressive if his hand wasn't twitching.

"I love Dustin." He declared, words calm, voice level, but tone subdued and dangerous as though he dared Hunter to disagree.

He didn't.

"I know," Hunter murmured because he did, anyone with half a brain could tell that, and Cam froze again, obviously thrown by his answer.

"I don't doubt that," he elaborated. This needed to be thoroughly established so they wouldn't spend the next half hour focusing on it. That wasn't what he was here for.

Cam accepted his answer but shifted the conversation in the wrong direction anyway, not that it couldn't be fixed. "Then why are you-"

Were they really going back to denial? He thought they were both smarter than this.

Hunter rolled his head to the side casually, allowing Cam to get a better look at him. "That doesn't mean you don't love Shane either."

Yeah, he said it, he said the "L" word (pun totally unintended). He didn't miss the sharp intake of air at his assertive statement, though he did give Cam credit for recovering quickly. The tech shifted in his arms, redistributing his weight as he reached out for his screwdriver, using the tool to focus his attention. A perfect plan to minimize unintended physical reactions.

Since he was probably going to end up interrupting whatever Cam was going to say next _anyway_ Hunter steeled himself for the big dish, burying his lips against the skin just above the collar of Cam's shirt.

"Don't be selfish Cam," he whispered, hoping he didn't sound as ridiculously patronizing as he felt, "you can't have them both."

To be honest he probably could, he could probably enrapture them both as easily as snapping his finger and then they would go off and be one happy unit of lovebirds who doted on each other in sickening ways, but Hunter couldn't allow that option in his mind because…because that option left him with a hollow pit in his stomach, knowing that everyone else could be at their optimum levels of happiness while he got left alone in the dust. _That_, that thought there should worry him more than it did but somehow working with this team made him all…emotional and stuff. Being alone never bothered him before, people were unpredictable and uncontrollable and the moment you even surrendered the smallest part of yourself to someone else was the moment you painted a giant bulls eye on your chest saying _"kick me fate, kick me good". _

Staying disengaged was how he survived. But now…

It was all their fault. Blake and Tori and Cam and Dustin being all lovey-dovey must have infected him. While he knew that the action of keeping Shane single wouldn't do anything to alleviate _his_ loneliness, it would sure as hell be nice not to be labeled the team's depressing extra wheel. It was like being the ugly sister, or the fat cousin or something. Everyone thought they were swell as a person but they were never going to get any dates _ever_ so it pretty much sucked to be them and everyone else knew it.

Hunter was _not_ going to let that happen to him.

Also, the idea of dating _one_ guy would probably take at least five months to sink into Shane's thick skull; Hunter didn't even want to think about how long it would take for _two_ guys. Cutting this off now before it got started would probably be best for everyone. No confusion, no drama, and no sad Dustin.

Because it was pretty much unanimous that if Dustin was ever sad the world was going to end.

Hunter didn't make the rule, he just knew it.

He was snapped back to reality by the sound of the screw driver hitting the table. It was the only warning he got before Cam decided he was all for trying the kick-Hunter-in-the-crotch game. When he realized the crimson ranger had his legs locked Cam settled for a backhand to the face. The blond reluctantly abandoned his hold on the tech and ducked back around the green-clad teen. Once released, Cam whipped around mind numbingly fast and before he could get too punch-y or kick-y or stab-y Hunter pressed forward, trapping the green ranger against the table.

The closeness was a risk, it could either instigate Cam or deter him, but Hunter was feeling lucky so he hoped for the latter, locking Cam's legs like he did earlier and grabbing on tightly to the lab table. He stared Cam dead in the eyes, foreheads touching, and started talking before they revisited their more violent pastimes.

"You can't-"

It was Cam who interrupted him this time, hands fisting against his collar, "What the hell do you know about love?"

Hunter didn't allow himself the time to think over Cam's accusation, because yeah, he knew shit about love, but working out the fine details of his understanding wasn't going to do jack diddly for _anybody_ so he bulled through his hesitations, staring at Cam hard.

"I know if you love him," he murmured, voice warning ridiculously more omniscient then he would ever really be. "If you love _them_," he revised, moving his hands to Cam's waist for no reason other than wanting to, "you'll let him go."

He wouldn't have noticed the faint trembling beneath his hands if he hadn't trained so long to notice the smallest details. Cam was grieving, sharing an ache that Hunter could never begin to understand. Two months ago he wouldn't have lost any sleep over the ramifications of his actions, especially the sore feelings his gruff manner tended to instigate. Two months ago he never would have thought that someone like Cam would be able to ruin him any more than the world already had. But the present demanded different of him, and Cam _was_ hurt and confused and probably guilty and angry and indulging in every facet of the emotional spectrum and Hunter, cool, aloof, played-off-all-wrongs Hunter was hurting just a _tiny_ bit with him. He would never say it aloud, and beyond this moment he would never think it again, but Cam had wounded him. Hunter had allowed himself to emotionally invest in the other ranger, however little, and that came back to bite him _hard_.

For mixed reasons they would probably never be able to forgive each other for that.

Still shaking, Cam released his hold on Hunter's collar, dropping his hands down to curl around the edge of the lab table.

He didn't lose Hunter's gaze, didn't retreat, he simply leaned forward carefully, speaking with absolute meaning, "I hate you."

The words echoed in Hunter's head but he ignored any feelings they stirred up.

He answered back with the same brutal honesty that spoke from his very core. "I hate you too."

_I hate all of you_.

For making him care, for making him _want_ to care, for having any kind of sway of his emotions.

For stringing him along.

For giving him hope.

For taking that hope away.

_I hate you so much_.

That was it then, they knew where each other stood, with each other, with the team. Cam had his ultimatum, Hunter had his "peace of mind" and soon Shane would get his friend back, and they could all go back to skipping along the merry road of sunshine and lollipops.

Hunter tilted his head, no longer needing to appear purposely threatening, and went back to looking at the side of Cam's face, restraining his hand's desire to circle around the other's waist. He _did_ give himself one thing, just one, since they were being so nauseating and honest. Grip tight against the green ranger's hips, Hunter trailed his lips down and gently kissed Cam on the cheek. It was their romanticism poisoning his brain; it was their drama and urgent trysts with melodrama that pushed for him to do it.

Before Cam could punch him or respond or think anything beyond _"Hunter. Jerk. Grrr."_, Hunter pulled back and threw on a cocky grin, slipping back into jerk-mode.

"Now be a good boy," he patronized; quickly earning that death-glare he had come to know and love, "and play nice with Shane."

On that note he left, slipping out of Ninja Ops and quietly as he came. Cam wouldn't let him down. The tech wouldn't allow himself to.

And if he really loved Shane, he would stop treating him like such a dick.

Seriously, that was third grade stuff.

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Dustin hadn't stopped fidgeting since he got there.

It wasn't uncustomary for Dustin to antsy, the yellow ranger plus uncoordinated movement were pretty much two peas in a pod (it was just all that excess energy, he couldn't keep still) but there was a distinct difference between Dustin being stir-crazy and Dustin being nervous and _this_ was the latter one. It could be argued that a year plus was not really enough time to fully understand someone, but Shane was confident he was right.

Dustin was feeling guilty which meant he either broke something of someone else's or he had been keeping some kind of secret. Judging by the sad looks he kept throwing Shane every few minutes, and the fact that he couldn't recall lending out anything to the yellow ranger to break, odds were it was the second option.

Thankfully working with this second option was pretty easy. All he had to do was sit and make small talk and look nice and approachable and encouraging and Dustin would eventually collapse and get his baggage off his chest in a torrential downpour of words. It was a nice change compared to all the other ways he was forced to resolve conflicts. Everyone else tended to make things difficult. Dustin, Dustin just spoke and he didn't _stop_ speaking until every possible query and conversational aside had been conceived and thoroughly covered. Some times took longer than others, but the end result was always the same and his work input was always minimal.

Eventually Dustin would talk.

All Shane had to do was wait.

For the second time that minute Dustin shot him an uneasy glance, accidentally dropping the wrench in his hands and flailing forward to catch it. They both crashed to the ground, Dustin giving off an quiet huff as he jumped to his feet quickly, recovering as though nothing had happened. Shane watched on in amusement and pretended he was looking at his watch, allowing his friend that small dignity.

Man he had missed this. Ever since Lothor began increasing his attacks they hadn't gotten a chance to hang out.

And that was it. Nothing else was keeping this from happening.

Nothing at all.

"Hey."

Shane glanced up from where he had zoned out staring at his watch, hand still held up awkwardly as Dustin fidgeted with the much abused wrench, indecision clear on his face.

Ah, it was talking time.

"Yeah Dustin," he replied, looking as open and unintimidating as possible. The unbridled guilt in the yellow ranger's eyes increased tenfold and Shane sighed, hopping down from his perch on the workbench and quickly made his way across the room to pull his best friend into a hug. There was no point in hiding it if it was just going to make things harder on Dustin.

The curly-haired teen tensed, then accepted his hug enthusiastically, dropping the wrench without a thought and burrowing into Shane like a second skin, pretending he was a part of him.

Okay this was a lot worse than he had thought it would be.

"I'm sorry," Dustin whispered, voice laden with regret. "I'm sorry."

When Kelly came back to check in on them half an hour later they would still be in the same position, Dustin furtively whispering his apologies for some unknown deed while Shane held him closer, giving him as much comfort as he needed until he was ready to talk. The red ranger exchanged a knowing look with the store owner before she turned away, closing up the shop behind her to allow the two their privacy.

When Dustin was ready to talk, Shane would be there to listen.

That's what friends did.

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Endnotes:

In which Hunter kinda has a heart and Cam is still a man whore.

Hi guys! I know this chapter is a little shorter than the rest but after finishing Hunter's part it really just felt done. There probably _will_ be some tradeoffs between the two versions because I write them at the same time, but I addressed everything that I wanted to cover so I cut it short.

That being said, I would like to thank my lovely reviewers for being the most awesome-dy, awesome sauce people _ever_. Yep, you get that title when you review me. Fact. RAWR, you love Adam too? I am also of the Adam-loving fandom! Yay quiet but dangerous, super secret stealth ninja! And Zordandammit is my new favorite curse word…when I can remember how to pronounce it. Rogue, you rogue you! I'm glad Hunter's growing on you. I kind of view him (now) as like a smarter, meaner version of Dustin. He's still a little out there, but it's all good and hilariously blunt and honest. And yeah, Shane's so far in the closet he's in the freaking garage right now, but I'll make that all well and good later.

ValkyrieNyght, good luck getting your internet! If you are reading this then congratulations on your success!

Next time we get to the love potions!

I wanted to do both versions love potion chapters at the same time, but Hunter demanded that this chapter be written first, so A's got delayed a week.

Until next time.


	40. What Do I Need With Love?

Chapter 40

What Do I Need With Love?

I don't own Thoroughly Modern Millie

Thanks to ValkyrieNyght for letting me bounce ideas off her, and for properly quarantining those that should never see the light of day. We are all in your debt : )

And continued thanks to The Tempestuous Muse for putting up with my undying love for commas and aversion to block formatting. You're patience knows no boundaries; you are the supreme queen of awesome.

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Shane felt like he was floating.

Which was weird because even with all of his air ninja training he had never actually floated _per se_, he had done plenty of hovering and gliding and air-running but the act of floating had escaped him. And it wasn't…it wasn't as though he were floating in water, buoyant with the constant uncompromising presence of liquid surrounding and supporting him in a semi-weightless condition. No, it was like the world had subtracted itself from around him, leaving him drifting aimless in a void. His weight was nothing; there was no gravity, there were no boundaries, limitations, or forces pressing against him. There was simply this unobtrusive lightness.

It wasn't as cold and negative as that sounded though. It wasn't, the floating, it didn't steal away any of his emotions, it didn't devour his soul or anything bad like that.

It was just…a pleasant kind of floating.

That was a _really_ good smoothie.

He smiled down at the drink in his hand, innocent and unassuming. It didn't require saving or demand his leadership or ignore him or betray him. It didn't refuse to give him what was expected of it, it simply _chilled_. It was all _"I'm a smoothie and I'm delicious and why don't you partake of my delicious coldness and enjoy it, for there is no deception here, only happiness"._

His smile widened, and he regarded the drink with renewed appreciation.

It was a _really_ good smoothie.

This healthy eating thing was really working for him. He should do it more often.

Shane closed his eyes for a moment while he took another sip of his beverage, chips of ice blending in a majestic collaboration of yogurt, strawberries, and who knows what other kind of glory mingled within. He felt strangely happy. Not like, exuberant or uncontrollably happy, but just…was it possible to feel glowing? If he had felt more hindered he would have thought he had been drugged. Glowing, that's how he felt. He was relaxed but content, weightless and without care and this was a _really_ good smoothie-

"Shane?"

A hand gripped the side of his shoulder and he was pulled from his smoothie induced happy cloud of glowing awesome begrudgingly, a look confirmed that it was Hunter, the blond appearing mildly concerned.

Weird.

He should try some of the smoothie; it would totally make him feel better.

"Yeah?" Shane crooned, smiling brightly at the crimson ranger. You know, he _always_ wore crimson. Like, _always_. There was never an off day for this guy. Sure, Shane always wore red, even before he was a ranger, but somehow he didn't look as at home in it as Hunter did in crimson. The blond really pulled it off. Shane liked it on him.

Hunter tilted his head to the side, searching for something, and Shane just smiled around his straw, taking another sip of his drink.

The blond's gaze flickered from him to the smoothie briefly, and the grip on his shoulder tightened. "Are you okay?"

Shane nodded fervently, not pausing his sip. Of course he was okay; he was on cloud float-a-glow, the best place on earth except…somehow Hunter's concern…weird, it…made him feel even better. Like, even though it was clear he was fine Hunter taking interest in his well being…it looked legitimate and it…made this warm feeling grow inside his chest, lazily spreading through him like the glow.

He should talk to Hunter more often, maybe he could return the feeling and Hunter could feel the warmth and the glow.

It was a really good feeling, he shouldn't keep it to himself, it should be shared, celebrated.

"Uh, huh," Hunter murmured under his breath, eyes still locked on the smoothie. It didn't look like he believed Shane. That brought up…conflicting emotions. "Why don't you let me have that?" The crimson ranger asked, motioning to the cup.

Shane, sad to see it go but wanting, needing Hunter to feel the… to feel happy, to _be_ happy, handed it over, smiling brightly.

"It's really good," he chirped, ignoring Hunter's suspicious gaze, "You should try it."

See, he was sharing, like he shared his color and sometimes the leadership… and conversations. He _liked_ sharing things with Hunter, come to think of it. He should try to do it more often. Then maybe the crimson ranger would be happier and smile, at him even.

Hunter didn't look like he was going to take a sip, he just kept staring at it, so Shane stepped in again, draping an arm across the blond's shoulders. "It'll make you feel floaty," he mused dreamily, enjoying the sensation. "And warm," he added, noticing the electric tingles that shot through his arm wherever he came into contact with Hunter.

That felt…really nice. Was Hunter doing that? Why hadn't he noticed it before? He had touched Hunter before…right?

"Warm," Hunter echoed, holding the drink farther away, eyebrows scrunched. Distrust, that's what that look was, but it wasn't aimed at him. It was the smoothie.

Did Hunter have a thing against fruit?

Shane pushed those musing aside and nodded quickly, "Yeah," he murmured, trying to think of a better way to explain it. "Like…" he trailed off, thinking, and then smiled as inspiration hit. Regretfully he pulled his arm away from Hunter's shoulder and slid around behind him, encircling his arms around the others waist and dropping his head against his shoulder, pulling the blond flush against his chest. "Warm," he mumbled, rolling his head to the side.

The tingling had grown into a full on lightning storm rippling across his body, heat flushing his skin. Touching Hunter was…it was even better than drinking the smoothie. Hell, forget the stupid beverage, he just needed Hunter. All the warmth and glow and weightlessness was right here, natural, ever-bright and ever-present radiating off the crimson ranger in angelic majesty.

Odd that he hadn't seen it before. That one shining light to fend off the darkness, that one hope in the distance.

Should it be weird that he was thinking about Hunter this way? That he liked touching him, needing him, wanting him to be there. Should he be concerned?

...

Hm…

…_nah_, this felt too good to be anything worth worrying about. Like, if this was one of Lothor's grand schemes it had to be the most epic of failures as far as reversed psychology went. If he was trying to make him feel uneasy or suspicious he was not getting any brownie points because Shane was far too high on cloud nine to be bothered.

And Hunter was very warm. He smelled like soap and peaches (from the smoothie?). Shane pressed his cheek into the blond hair, soft, fine, wonderfully comfortable. Better than a pillow, better than a cloud. It was perfect. If hair was rated on a scale from one to ten Hunter's hair would be at nine thousand, standing immaculate on a pedestal while all other hair genuflected before it weeping, forever thankful to be allowed the privilege of basking in its glory.

It was _really_ good hair.

Shane was torn between his desire to run his finger through it and his need to further investigate the Hunter-warmth. He wanted to touch his skin, see if the clothes hindered any of the…the rush of…whatever it was he was feeling.

He liked Hunter's skin. It was smooth and light and wore scars better than Shane ever would be able to. There were some on his back, he never talked about them but they were trophies, unneeded proof of Hunter's will to live, of his infinite survival skills. Of the trials he'd come through victorious, humble but wary and conditioned to endure in brooding silence. They were the graffiti soaked into the foundation of Hunter, reinventing what was underneath, refusing to allow for the ordinary. They had been painted there so long ago Hunter couldn't even remember _how_ he functioned before. The scars, inside, outside, had molded him into the warrior he was today. Stone coarse with ragged edges, the smooth spots, the perfections hidden away, waiting patiently to be revealed.

He _really_ liked Hunter's skin. When you got to know it, when you had studied it long enough and studied _him_ long enough it was a blatant expression of everything Hunter was. You just had to know where to look. You just couldn't give up when he pushed you away.

Because he would. Nine times out of ten when first evaluating a situation Hunter would most assuredly shove off all attempts at contact, and on the tenth time he would allow you in just long enough to take a fatal stab at your well-being, to dole out the damage before he collect any wounds himself. Shane couldn't fault him for it and knew only too well the temptation seclusion and isolation presented. He had seen it in Dustin; he had seen it in Cam, he had seen it in himself before when he had discovered just _how_ much Tori and Dustin had meant to him. Keeping to yourself was the ultimate protection. You would never feel self-conscious, you would never feel ashamed, you could never be hurt.

The only drawback is loneliness, but once you've balanced out all the advantages it's difficult to see how big a sacrifice it really is.

True, that didn't entirely apply to Hunter. He had Blake, always had Blake, to motivate his survival. Shane couldn't help but feel jealous of the navy ranger; he got to see Hunter at his most open. He never had to work to get in between the cracks, he never had to slowly, ever painstakingly crawl his way into Hunter's realm of acceptance, never had to warm himself up to him. Hunter accepted his opinions and his faults unconditionally, Hunter cared for him, loved him, protected him, and all without Blake ever asking him too.

Shane was vaguely aware of ridiculousness of those feelings, because Blake was Hunter's brother, his family, and all of that was to be expected at the very _least_, but he still, he still hates Blake just a little. For his ridiculous ease for falling into Hunter's good graces. For the effort he will _never_ have to put forth.

Shane can hate him for that…just a little.

He frowned, not at all enjoying his current train of thought and attempted to distract himself, gently slipping a hand under the bottom of Hunter's shirt to see if theory had any merit. He just needed a small touch, nothing too big, he didn't want to get greedy, didn't want to…

He dragged his index finger across the bottom of his abs, taking in the, the fire, biting, flaring through his hand, it was…intoxicating, addictive, he kind've wanted to do it again, just one more, just-

Hunter's hand curled around his wrist, grip firm but not…not angry firm, just authoritative-firm, demanding to be listened to. Shane withdrew his hand shyly, disappointed to lose the heat but hating the idea of displeasing Hunter more. Hunter was rarely relaxed and happy with them, Shane didn't want him to withdraw back into his shell, pull back all the light and wonder that he radiated with unconscious ease.

Shane didn't want to get left in the dark again, he didn't want to be stuck fighting the wall.

"Sorry," he murmured, pulling his head away from the golden hair long enough to send a sincere apologetic look the crimson ranger's way. Strangely enough, lucky, but strange still, Hunter didn't seem to be upset he was simply…confused, concerned still.

Shane was beginning to wonder if he was missing something.

He was about to ask Hunter exactly what the problem was when someone spoke for him, sounding as bewildered as he felt.

"_Dude_."

Shane pulled his gaze away from Hunter long enough to get a look at the source, Blake, looking somewhat bothered by the…if Shane had to make a guess he would say it was because of his closeness to his brother. Shane resisted the urge to hug Hunter closer and settled for a glare, because it wasn't any of his business (unreasonable again, it was and he hated it) who was close to Hunter, that was the blond's business, not _his_.

Blake was visibly taken aback by his reaction, confusion evident in his features as he recoiled, retreating a step. Shane smiled in satisfaction, unconsciously hugging the arm still around Hunter's waist tighter in victory. It was a small win, but it was his. Blinking, he noticed that the rest of the team was staring at him and Hunter with the same confusion Blake had. They were worried even, and it was started to bother him that he didn't understand what the problem was.

Hunter broke the starring contest by clearing his throat suddenly; his patient cough, his _"you all stop being idiots and pay attention"_ cough, and Shane turned and concentrated on him, face hovering inches away from the other's cheek.

"Shane," he murmured, in the same patient tone he used when the patient cough was engaged, "get off me."

He didn't seem mad, or frustrated, he didn't even seem baffled anymore, he was simply back to sarcastic, abrupt Hunter. Shane frowned; sorry to be banished, but stepped away, immediately missing the firework warmth that was Hunter.

It wasn't fair, why didn't Hunter want him?

He glared at the ground, shoving his hands in his pockets irritably.

He wasn't _that_ bad, and it was just a hug. Maybe it was because they were in public…yeah, that was probably it. Hunter was only just starting to open up to him in private; he had just pushed too fast. The blond simply wasn't ready for that kind of commitment.

Spirits renewed, Shane looked back up again, staring happily at the crimson ranger. The rest of the team still looked confused, bothered by whatever nonsense was dragging them down. They were probably just jealous of his smoothie.

Speaking of which…

"Can I have it back now?" He asked, motioning to the frozen beverage in Hunter's hand. If the crimson ranger wasn't going to allow him to get touchy he could at least get his glowy happiness back. The smoothie would accept his love.

Hunter paused, giving him an incredulous look before turning his attention to the smoothie, whose glory _had_ captured the attention of the rest of the team. So he had been right.

"No," Hunter said after a moment, handing the drink discreetly over to Cam.

Shane pouted and tilted his head to the side, thinking of a way to turn this around.

Logically, he only had one answer.

"Can we go to your place?"

If Hunter was going to just _give_ his smoothie away the least he could do was allow Shane some snuggle time. It was forward he knew, asking in front of the others, hell, asking at _all_ felt mildly suicidal, but he wanted…he _needed_ Hunter. He just…he couldn't explain it. This urge, this…fascination but he just wanted to be with him. And if Hunter was most comfortable at him, most like himself in that run-down apartment then that's where Shane would go. Whatever made him happy.

They all froze, shocked, again, Blake looking like he was about to object, but Hunter cut in, recovering smoothly, just as he always did.

"Sure," he answered, finally up to speed, and Shane beamed at him, following behind quickly as the blond made his way out of Storm Chargers.

He didn't see the knowing look that passed between Hunter and the rest of the team, nor the determined nod given by Cam, eyes intent on the plastic cup in his hands.

He could only think of the warmth that was to come, of the light that Hunter was going to share.

And that's really all he needed

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There was a an uneasy silence after the two red's exited the building, a small calm reverberated in intense foreboding of the strange antics that were to come.

Blake would have been a lot more appreciative of it if he had_ not_ just witnessed his brother being molested in public, but the world didn't come with emotional air bags so his brain was still stuck in the _"gross-ohgod-mybrain-mybrain-mybrain-my__**brother**__-needbleach-ohgod-__**why-whygod-WHY?**__"_ so he really couldn't be bothered with things like deducing _why_ Shane had been one step from dry-humping the only family he had never known.

There is a good chance he should have attempted to defend his brother's honor, if for appearances sake more than for anything else (Hunter could defend his own virtue better than he ever could) but the sudden change had been so…uh…sudden…and different…and _what-the-hell-why-was-he-touching-my-brother_?

He was vaguely aware of Tori's comforting pats against his arms, of Dustin's attempts to jog him out of his man-violation induced stupor, of Cam's quiet murmurings as to the possible contents of the mystery-creeper juice that had contaminated Shane's cup, but the only thing he could think of is that Sparkles McRainbow Pants was being given a first class seat to his new most favorite show. Unlimited access to his brother without fear of interruption and _whythehelldidheleavethemalone-Hunter-whygod-__**why**__?_

He's out the door before he can think about it, already streaking back to their apartment, not in an attempt to put a stop to this crazy (even though he should), because Hunter would have his balls for that, but to simply observe from a distance and provide electrical back up in the off-hand chance poisoned-Shane got a little too courageous. Especially considering the fact how nonchalant he had been in Storm Chargers _(god his __**brain**_) Blake didn't even want to _think_ about what horrors he would commit in private.

It wasn't necessary, Hunter could wipe the floor with most of them on a good day and it was possible for the poison to hinder Shane's reflexes as well as making him a super creeper, but Blake didn't want to take any chances. It was his brother.

When he eventually settled into a perch across the street from their apartment he was joined by another, Tori landing down right behind him, as quiet and stealthy as any of the masters. He didn't offer and explanations and she didn't demand any, she already knew _why_, she had already accepted and supported his reasons, she was simply there to provide back up. To let him know he wasn't alone.

Despite the repulsive sights of the afternoon, and those soon to be promised, he managed to find a small sliver of comfort in that.

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Whatever the hell Shane had taken had made him into a bit of an…well, Dustin had been getting onto him for cleaning up his language so Hunter's going to go with an "odd duck", as the yellow ranger so often preferred (though in his head it's something more akin to _"drugged off his ass" _but it's not like specifics were ever really important). He'll give Lothor this; Shane's constant state of drunk-on-endorphins, abundance-of-affection was amusing as hell.

At least, when it wasn't creepy.

Unfortunately the humor of the situation evaporated when he figured out all the possible ramifications this entire foray could produce, most pressing that there was a good chance Shane was going to remember all of this _later_, and that preventative actions needed to be taken to ensure Hunter didn't go back on the other's shit list. Not that he would have taken advantage of the situation otherwise, it was just that drugged-Shane was not as on-board with the no-touching/doting/creepy-staring plan as _he_ was.

And as opposed to producing an amusing response when Hunter shot down all his approaches, he had to go and be all…sad and depressed and stuff, which pretty much sucked whatever mirth there was right out of the situation.

What's worse was that he was beginning to feel bad for the stupidly doped-up lug.

Sad eyes watched him from the couch, darting away immediately whenever he began to turn in their direction, depressed, timid, body huddled as though unworthy, willing himself into complete stillness so as to avoid upsetting Hunter for reasons he did _not_ understand.

He should not care about the pouting, forlorn, dejected piece of man-meat sitting on his couch. Yes, on a normal day, with a _normal_ Shane, he should care. In fact the entire reason behind his new "tough love" approach was _entirely_ because he was keeping _that_ Shane in mind. This new-Shane was temporary. This new-Shane was being mind controlled. This new Shane did not know what he wanted because if he _did_ his brain would have exploded by the very idea of it.

This new-Shane wasn't really feeling _anything_.

…So why did he feel like such a scuzbucket for ignoring his obvious depression?

It wasn't _real_; Hunter should_ not_ be bothered by this. All he had to do was wait…probably, and it would wear off, or Cam would pull through with an answer, or they would be sent on some mystical quest to get the blessed nail clippers of some ancient race that would cure Shane or _something _as equally ridiculous and this would all be over.

And yet here he was, studying the deepening depression of his team's red ranger, wanting to put a stop to it.

Realistically, he knew his hands were tied. He knew he didn't have a lot of options. He couldn't really play along with what Shane wanted (well, he _could_ but for the sake of keeping a good standing relation with him he really _couldn't_) and he couldn't just knock him unconscious because the drugged-teen looked so ridiculously pathetic Hunter would actually feel _guilty_, but if he kept just doing _this_ new-Shane might do something drastic.

Like try to buy him flowers again.

That had _not_ been an interesting side quest.

Still, sitting quietly wasn't doing much for him, so he decided to break the silence, hoping to minutely distract Shane from his woes.

"This is for your own good," he lectured quietly, folding his arms while he readjusted his position against the far wall. He had kept on his feet in case Shane felt like getting mobile…or throwing himself out one of the windows in a fit of despair or something.

Shane immediately snapped his head in the direction of Hunter's voice, eyes sorrowful and posture rigid suggesting that what he greatly disagreed with what Hunter thought would most benefit him. That small tendril of defiance that leaked into his eyes was so shockingly… natural that Hunter was taken slightly aback, eyes widened just a fraction in shock before he recovered, forcing himself to look bored.

"Just trust me," he murmured, almost more to himself than to Shane, and turned his gaze toward the window, no longer wishing to tolerate Shane's blank stare.

Okay, maybe talking was worse than the silence had been. There was a reason he had stuck to that. Best to just fall back into it.

Across the room, after what was assuredly a crescendo of emotions swelling in that magicked up void of want and need and falsities, Shane tightened his grip on the arm of the sofa, abused fabric straining beneath his fingertips.

_A bit overdramatic, don't you think Shane?_

So absorbed with his mental evaluation of the pro's and con's of mocking Shane after this mess was cleaned up that he almost missed the red's quiet declaration. It was only the pure confidence and motivation that brought him back to reality, surprised and genuinely at a loss for words.

"I love you."

Hunter blinked, still not looking at the other room's inhabitant and reviewed the past few seconds convinced that he had simply heard wrong. Lust potion he got, love potion…yeah, he could swing that, it was cliché but doable. But this…that…that thing he hadn't heard was a far-cry from the simple crazed affection from Storm Chargers. Hunter was supposed to be like a drug, his addiction his…something he desired _yes_, but in a humorous way not…

"I love you."

He could blow off one declaration as a mistake in hearing, but two…Shane had really said it.

And strangely enough, he had sounded like he _meant_ it.

_Talk about love potion number nine. _

Right, it was a simulation still, not the real thing. This was still just a temporary situation, not important, and above all else, not real.

It bothered him how much those words, however false, struck something deep in him, threatening to fill up that hallow hole in his chest with something more substantial than mere echoes. Sucking in a breath he shook his head, trying to get back into the game. Out of habit he deflected, running a hand through his hair in annoyance. "No, you don't, but don't worry about-"

And then there were arms there, in that space that once held nothing, and legs and hands and _Shane_, standing right in front of him, across the room in an instant, one arm gripping tight at his waist while another held his face gently, warm but insistent and ridiculously present.

It took everything in him, all his years of schooling his features into the ultimate poker face, meditation upon meditation of forced detachment to keep him from reacting to the sudden intrusion in his personal space. To keep him from over-thinking how foreign the intimacy of it was, to keep him from thinking about it _at all_.

Instead he forced himself to watch, to simply take it all in for later dissection when gifted with the safety of privacy.

Though even then he would refuse to admit to or even label the small spark of joy that flared up in his stomach.

"Yes," Shane whispered, refusing to put up with any bull as he so often did, caring and bright and demanding, "I love you."

He didn't leave any room for argument, he didn't open the floor to discussion, he simply stated the facts with enough force to will Hunter into believing him. In that regard he was successful, and the blond backed away gently, keeping his eyes locked on Shane's to make sure further belittlement was not an option.

"Okay," he murmured, squeezing the side of Shane's arm, "I believe you."

Apparently that was all that needed to be said. The fight immediately left Shane, the tension in his body melting away as he took a cautious step back, staring at Hunter with…longing…caring…want-_need-sorrow-desperation-loneliness-__**lov**_-

He turned away quickly, exiling himself back to the couch, and Hunter sagged back against the wall, schooling himself back into quiet surliness.

They just needed to wait it out. Then Shane would go back to being normal Shane and Hunter could go back to not treading on eggshells and flying on false promises and thinking, thinking about anything that had to do with the subject of feelings or romance or…anything that made him feel any less in-control than he already was, anything that threatened his way of existence.

For the sake of simplicity, he would never talk about this again. As much fun as it would be to mock the red ranger for his misfortune, it simply wasn't worth the stroll, however casual, down memory lane.

And if he was a very lucky boy, Shane would see it that way to.

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Endnotes:

Wow…forty chapters just kind've flew by. I honestly didn't think I'd make it this far, but, well, here we are.

1. I feel so sorry for that poor Shane guy; he keeps drinking those freaking love potions. He should really do a better job of guarding his cup.

2. Check it out everybody, it's Blake! Blake, you know, that other guy that gets to talk sometimes? _That_ guy.

3. Whilst editing this there were many fits of laughter, so much so that my sister eventually scoffed, "Quit giggling, you can't hear my scorn if you're giggling."

Because scorn cannot overpower giggles.

A million thank you's to everyone who reviewed last chapter, *basks in encouragement* you guys always make me feel awesome. James, welcome back, and RayneLover101 welcome aboard! RAWR, I tried to brighten your day with some epic Blake freakout...kind've…okay, I really just like the name Sparkles McRainbow pants, but you were in mind for part of it! ValkyrieNyght, sunshine, I couldn't have done this without you, seriously, Hunter becoming awesome would never have come to be without your support, so thank you, thank you for making me see how fun he can really be. Also, welcome to the "We heart Adam" club. I doubt he'll be making a guest appearance in _this_ story, but I do have plans for him once this story is complete. The world will get itself some more Adam.

Half of this was written while at girl scout camp, I volunteered to help run some sessions, so if anything seems off its from lack of sleep, I swears.

Until next time.


	41. Always Look on the Bright Side of Life

Chapter 41

Always Look on the Bright Side of Life

I don't own Spamalot.

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Dustin wasn't all that sneaky of a person.

Alright, so that was arguable on some levels because obviously being recruited for a secret ninja academy to learn secret ninja-ee stuff and then going forth to protect the world with ninja wind morphers required _some_ amount of sneakiness, but like, personality wise, Dustin was all sneaked out. Any conniving or mischievous plotting just wasn't in him. He'd know, he looked, and failed. Cam tried to argue the point sometimes, but that only made Dustin more frustrated because it was like having a super power he didn't even know he had…or know how to use, but somehow it happened, it got out there, he just didn't have any control over it.

The point is, Cam's delusions aside, Dustin wasn't a sneaky person.

So he's not entirely sure _why_ he happened to be going through Cam's security footage of Ninja Ops…okay, so it _may_ of had something to do with killing time and a little game he had going with Cyber Cam where they tried to do as many things as Cam didn't want them to do without the tech noticing, but it all had been harmless fun, really. He respected Cam's (and Sensei's) privacy, didn't look into the green ranger's room or the ninja master's…habitat, he just watched the comings and goings of all the normal safe areas.

It was kind've fun…in a boring way…if that's possible. Like, calming is probably the better way of putting it. Watching the day-to-day activities of Cam and their mission debriefs and…

Okay, so it was really just a whole bunch of talking. And tinkering, and coding, and cuddling (whenever he entered the picture), but for the most part it was kind've dull which shouldn't be reasonably possible because how, _how_ could the flow of life be boring in a _secret ninja base?_ The name itself practically forbid boredom from ever drawing near. Sure, there was the occasional spar but that was about as loud and kooky as it got.

Dustin felt strangely disappointed at the discovery, but couldn't find it in himself to be too terribly surprised. What had he been expecting, mad rave parties?

He could see Cam having mad glow stick skills.

He shouldn't have complained to Cyber Cam though. He should have known (despite Cam's many assurances otherwise) that not all the kinks had been worked out. The program seemed to take his declaration on as a challenge and before Dustin could protest (because Ninja speed still wasn't a great match for cyber speed) the hologram presented him a rather…a surprising discovery.

It started off with Cam in his lab doing his normal labby stuff, fiddling with an object with unpronounceable name here and adjusting the thingamabob with the flashing lights there, all normal run of the mill activities. It changed a second later when Hunter entered the scene, swaggering in as he normally did when he felt the desperate need to aggravate Cam. The green ranger doesn't pay him any attention, because he's far too awesome to get caught up in Hunter's childish games when there's some good old fashioned…stabbing to be doing, or something.

After that there was some more of the basic Hunter/Cam interaction. Hunter would talk, Cam would ignore him, Hunter would talk some more and act like it hadn't bothered him, Cam would ignore him some more, Hunter would refuse to go away and try again and…

Hey!

…hey, hey, hey, _no_, that's not…_Hunter_…

Because apparently the crimson ranger had taken a page from Dustin's book and decided that snugglin' was the most effective weapon _ever_ for dealing with grumpy Cam, which might have worked but that was _Dustin's_ move and he got to do it because that fine piece of genius man was _his_ and _not_-_getoffmy__**boyfriend!**_

And then there's some more talking, which Dustin didn't really pay much attention to because _anger…growing_, but then Cam _finally_ reacted to whatever Hunter said and they were spitting bullets at each other, angry, steaming mad in that subdued way Cam does because he refused to allow Hunter to get the best of him and Hunter had that burning fury but it was all built up around his eyes because he was the master robot who always carried out his mission before he allowed his emotions to get involved.

Why didn't Cam have _audio?_

He wanted to know what they were talking about too! He's supposed to be mad at Hunter for something other than boyfriend-snugglin' and he wanted to know _what_. Why did those two always butt heads all the time? Yes, he made out with Hunter once, but Dustin figured the blond had more then made up for it with the face smashing Cam had given him. Aren't they even now? Dustin was…he never admitted it but he was still a little grateful for Hunter's help, because that's what got him to Cam, so he had been much faster to forgive and move on, except for now but…

…

…

…oh no, he did _not_.

Hunter did _not_ just kiss Cam on the cheek because they _weren't_ family and they _weren't_ dating and while it could be argued that teammates were allowed to kiss other teammates you didn't see anyone _else_ getting all touchy feely with each other! How would Hunter feel if he…uh…started getting fresh with Blake? Yeah, how's about a little brother molestation to even the odds? Blake was already traumatized by Shane's public displays of affection toward Hunter; it would only be fair for Dustin to repay the sentiment.

…except Hunter would be far less forgiving then anyone else on the team and Dustin really didn't want to die. It would probably be really hard to find a replacement yellow ranger.

Also, he was kind've a fan of living.

Cuz you know…it's good and stuff.

…That was _not_ cool. What did Hunter want? Besides anger and snarkiness and…he wouldn't purposefully go out of his way to upset Cam right? They were past that. They weren't a perfect team but Hunter didn't do things without a reason, he didn't bother himself with things that he didn't think were important.

Dustin just needed to go and talk to him, straighten everything out.

…and if that failed he could ask Cam and Tori if it was okay for him to make out with Blake.

He's pretty sure the navy ranger wouldn't mind _too_ much.

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Shane was doing that thing where he privately worked through his "traumatic experience" on his lonesome in the solitude of the skate ramp or hidden valley or wherever his preferred haunt for angsting was, and Hunter, being the fine gentleman that he was, opted to let him work though his issues before they ended up doing that 'talking' thing the red ranger seemed _oh_ so fond of. Or, if things go the way _he_ wanted them to he could just smack the skater on the back of the head and tell him to stop being stupid and they could return to the tentative friendship they were trying out.

But that would be easy, excessively easy, so the talking thing was probably going to happen instead.

…so he's just going to verbally deliver the head smack and _then_ they would be cool.

It wasn't the greatest plan, but it was workable.

That being said with his brother still awkwardly avoiding both he _and_ Shane (which is something Hunter's going to have to smack out of him too if he doesn't knock it off real quick) and Cam reverting back to the silent treatment, Hunter figured he was in the free and clear for at _least_ a couple of days before someone busted into his apartment with over-emotional negative tidings aimed at _him_.

In retrospect, this was clearly a stupid assumption to make.

The insistent banging on his door made it obvious enough that Dustin was the one on the other side but in his defense, the repetitive tapping wasn't outside the reach of the standard Dustin code of conduct so he honestly couldn't tell there was a stormy horizon zeroing in on his person. Of course by the time he had opened the door it had been too late because yes, he _would_ have simply left Dustin out there to simmer in his own discontent had he known how pissed he was (as the yellow ranger was too polite to simply bust down his door and he was more than willing to take advantage of that).

But their apartment didn't come with a peep hole and Dustin generally came bearing escapades that couldn't help but be entertaining so Hunter opened the door. And then he almost shut it, but Dustin was a fast little _bastard_ and had somehow osmosised that defensive maneuver from his brain and ducked past him quickly, coming to a jerking halt in the center of the room, looking back and forth uncertainly.

Hunter thought that if he simply kept quiet the yellow ranger would cool down, that Dustin hadn't really thought anything through and was figuring out what his next move would be. Entertainment was still salvageable. But then the curly-haired teen seemed to find whatever he had been looking for and darted into the room Hunter and Blake shared before the crimson ranger could object (and he would have because their room was pathetically sparse). The yellow ranger reemerged just as Hunter made it to the couch, each hand equipped with a pillow.

It took about three eighths of a second before Hunter realized that it was _on_.

He heard the first pillow fly past his head as he leapt to the side, using the couch as shelter while he regrouped for the second barrage. He rolled to his knees in time to see that Dustin had anticipated his move and was already leaping over the front of the sofa, pillow reared back to enable some major clubbing. Hunter blindly lunged out of the way, back in the direction of the first discarded pillow. Had he a moment to breathe he would have marveled at the absurdity of the situation (it gave extreme pillow fighting a whole new meaning) but after the rather aggressive actions of a certain green ranger towards a certain awesome crimson ranger and a rather stern "team mates don't bludgeon other team mates with their surprisingly bony fists" lecture from Sensei, Hunter supposed there was a certain level of reasoning behind Dustin's actions.

He was not happy. To be exact, he was not happy at _Hunter_ and while they would eventually get to the yelling part of the conversation Dustin, much like that loveable boyfriend of his, was not magnificently gifted in the communication department. It was a wonder those two hadn't killed each other yet they failed so bad, seriously, he and Blake had a small betting pool going. So this little…war here, this was the yellow ranger's warm up for expressing his displeasure at whatever Hunter had done (he should just start assuming that they were mad at him _always_, it would probably save him some trouble).

And according to the rules of Sensei, and to stay in everyone's good graces, and because he legitimately _liked_ Dustin (when he wasn't pummeling Hunter with his own pillow), he would just have to play along.

He should have felt worse about it, considering the circumstances under which they were instigated, but the pillow fighting was actually kind of fun. Sort of like diet-sparing.

He should try it with Blake later; make sure it's not just a fluke.

Blake had a natural gift of ruining things. Hunter had used it to his advantage many times.

His blind roll hit pay dirt once he got upright again, the decoy pillow ended up right next to him. He snatched it up just as Dustin pelted the second pillow, successfully managing to thwack his shoulder before plummeting to the ground. That left the score at Hunter: Pillow, Dustin: weaponless. The crimson ranger definitely had the advantage. He smiled victoriously, brandishing his pillow with an amount of smugness that was very fitting and well done, but would be immediately forgotten as the yellow ranger simply tackled him to the ground, wrestling for the fluffy weapon as though his life depended on it.

Hunter supposed that for the moment, it kind of did.

"Give it back," Dustin growled, or his best attempt at a growl which Hunter wouldn't say completely failed but it was a far cry from what he was probably going for. "I need… to express… my _displeasure_." He frowned, straddling Hunter's waist in an attempt to get better leverage, which incidentally worked _very_ well with very little credit to Dustin's effort and very much credit to Hunter letting go from surprise at the sudden invasion of space. Hunter knew that Dustin didn't really think much about his actions like…ever, he just sorta did things, but the crimson ranger thought that the mechanic had started to become more aware of his…_Dustiness_ after dating Cam.

…nope, not quite.

Dustin smiled triumphantly but didn't make the same mistake as Hunter by hesitating; instead he immediately began his pillow barrage, leaving Hunter to block as much of the fluffy damage as he could with arms to varying degrees of success. It didn't help that Dustin was still on top of him, and angry, and _wiggling_, but Hunter pushed through it…mentally…whatever, and kept his eyes open, trying to time the best moment for him to snatch that stupid pillow away and…

The pummeling didn't _immediately_ stop when the door opened, Dustin took the opportunity to give a sound smack on the side of his head when he turned to see Blake's reaction, because it _had_ to be Blake, and it was totally worth it, his brother shocked and disturbed enough to drop his bag stuffed with riding gear. Dustin decided to notice him a few seconds later, glaring at the navy ranger's intrusion as though _he_ were at fault and Blake just looking like he wanted to erase the past three seconds _so_ badly and _oh god this was __**wonderful**_**. **

Now Dustin just had to say something...you know, Hunter's not even going to bother describing it, the might of Dustin cannot be tamed by mere labels.

The yellow ranger pointed his pillow bearing hand at the younger thunder ranger threateningly, scrunching his eyebrows in an odd manner that was probably supposed to be intimidating but came off more as "I have something in my eye"-ish.

_Here's the wind up_.

"Go away," he ordered, pillow shaking, "we're kind've in the middle of something important." He paused, as though remembering what it was, and smacked Hunter one more time (who took it full on because he had been too busy staring at Blake's growing look of horror).

_And the pitch_.

Unable to resist Hunter smiled cheekily, wanting desperately to add the cherry on top but careful not to provoke Dustin further. "Yeah Blake, this is a private conversation."

Dustin smacked him again anyway but Hunter didn't complain, he had been too busy smiling at the space previously occupied by his brother that was now sporting a very loud slammed door.

_Ah…_Blake was probably going to avoid him for a good few days more just because of that, but it was totally worth it in the long run. It's what older brothers are for anyway, beating you down, making you stronger.

It's a thankless job but someone's got to do it.

A sudden increase in pressure on his stomach jolted him from those happy thoughts (yes, those are the happy ones, don't judge) and turned his attention back to Dustin, who finally seemed pillow-happied out. The yellow ranger sighed, slumping completely down on Hunter as he toyed with the edge of the attack pillow. He sighed again and hugged the pillow to his chest, worried look on his face as he stared off into the distance, mind clearly wandering and Hunter would have been a lot more sympathetic if his favorite breathing place wasn't slowly being crushed by a teen whose majority of body mass was muscle.

He coughed loudly, trying to get the other's attention and failed. He then coughed _louder_ and once more, failed. Then he gave up all pretense of being "subtle" and started waving a hand in front of Dustin's face, eager to snap the other out of it so he could make with the breathing again. He was a fan of the breathing.

"…Dustin," he choked out, waving his hand energetically, "…my stomach."

_That_ seemed to get through to him. Dustin snapped back, quickly removing himself from Hunter's stomach and handing the pillow over with a level of quiet reservation that vastly differed from his fury induced attack from earlier. Hunter accepted it gingerly, watching as Dustin reached over and snagged the other discarded pillow from its hiding spot behind a chair and tuck it behind his head, flopping down to the ground with a slightly distracted air. Hunter studied him, confused, but decided to go with the flow, tucking his pillow under him before joining in the new epic contest of staring at the ceiling.

Well, at least it didn't involve hurting _him_.

That was one thing.

"Are you lonely Hunter?"

And _that_ was another thing.

"What?" he asked and immediately regretted it, snapping his head to the side to meet the inquisitive stare of one Dustin Brooks, being miraculously insightful and inquisitive and…who was Hunter kidding this was probably just a lucky guess. What did it have to do with anything? Was Dustin mortally wounded at the idea that he could be lonely or was it something else? How the hell had…no, it didn't even matter how, Hunter just had to brush it off, play it cool, Dustin would never know the difference.

He continued before Dustin could get a chance to answer him, taking his own advice and relaxing into a cocky grin. "I'm fine Dustin, I have Blake."

_If that's what you're worried about_.

What brought this up?

Dustin frown again, eyebrows scrunching in a way that did _not_ suggest he believed Hunter. He looked confused, but thankfully not suspicious, wringing his hands lightly. "That's not what I meant," Dustin clarified, frowning once more as he turned onto his side to get a better look at Hunter, pillowing his head atop his right arm. "Like, Blake has Tori and I have Cam. Aren't you a little…" he trailed off, gesturing vaguely with his freehand, "lonely?"

Hunter couldn't stop from frowning, couldn't help but play on the defensive as Dustin got a little too close into uncomfortable territories. He tried to brush it off again, rejuvenating his smugness. "Isn't this something you should be asking your best friend?"

Because Shane didn't have anyone either. Granted, Hunter had never really asked about the red ranger's life outside the team, but Shane was charismatic enough and grounded enough to be able to pick up any girl of his choice, or at least a moderately sane one. For Hunter that wasn't really an option, not that it was important, or that Shane's personal life was important, or relevant, it was just…

Dustin looked thoughtful over that, as though he hadn't considered that nugget of wisdom and filed it away, choosing to stay on topic instead of pursuing it further because he was annoyingly stubborn like that.

"Yeah, but Shane didn't kiss my boyfriend."

And Hunter totally had, but that wasn't something Dustin was supposed to know about.

The yellow ranger answered his question before he had a chance to vocalize it, patting Hunter's pillow demonstratively to explain his previous rage. "Cyber Cam showed me," Dustin informed, squinting his eyes as though recalling the memory, "it was a challenge."

Dustin refused to expand on that last point and Hunter didn't feel boggled enough for it to be relevant so he quickly made some calculations to see where they were on the playing ground. Dustin had seen, had undisputable proof of Hunter snuggling up to his boyfriend and while he could argue Cam was ignoring him…because he _had_ done this kind of thing before, the kiss would be harder to pass off _especially_ considering the fact that Dustin, in his emotionally incompetent glory, seemed to have figured out the heart of the problem within the few seconds between Hunter beat-down and Hunter talk-time. _That_ was the real disturbing part. Even if Dustin had been ruminating over his well being since viewing the video that was _still_ just a little too insightful for Hunter to be comfortable. Either Dustin knew him really well...and he wasn't even going to touch that one, or he…uh…knew what loneliness looked like, and the actions inspired thereof.

…now _that_ was a little more plausible.

Though Hunter was a still at odds with how to handle that.

He had been trying but he was still…he found it difficult, or strange to turn to someone for help in…where emotions were concerned. He and Blake, they didn't need to talk, they _knew_ everything there was to know, when the other was hurting what to do, it didn't need to verbally acknowledged because it was inherent. Aside from the occasional "I love you, don't die" they didn't really talk about things and that worked for Hunter. But with the others…they needed all _kinds_ of explanations for _everything_ and he didn't…acknowledging this…that loneliness was like acknowledging a weakness and why would he want to do that with someone else? Someone who wouldn't definitely be there for him, no question, no strings attached?

The only person he had that with was Blake and while he liked his team, valued their strengths and trusted them in battle…this was just different.

This was trust, implicit trust, and he knew Dustin wouldn't hurt him on purpose…pillow barrages aside, wouldn't intentionally betray him he just…he had his concerns.

A thought he never addressed hung stubbornly in the back of his mind, worried that if he _did_ open up the others wouldn't like what they saw. That even Dustin wouldn't accept him anymore.

Of course there was no need to worry about the ramifications of spilling his guts when it clearly hadn't been asked for, so Hunter kept with where he and Dustin were _now_ and decided to play it safe. Dealing with his problem most effectively by not dealing with it at all. Asking one thing and jumping about eighteen steps forward in the conversation was Dustin's territory, there was no need to offer free ammunition here.

First things first, a solid explanation, "He was ignoring me."

Because he was, but then Dustin gave him a kicked puppy look brimming with disappointment and _woe_ and Hunter instantly felt like a tool for ignoring the obvious problem here. That is, the whole kissing of Cam thing.

Stupid impulses.

Stupid Cam.

Stupid, _stupid_ Cam.

…and Cyber Cam.

…all Cam's….all of them, in the world, just to be safe.

They were probably all stupid anyway.

It looked like at least a _little_ soul bearing was going to be required in order to get out of this one.

Thankfully, insightful-Dustin seemed to somehow sense his pain.

"I'm sorry."

Hunter stared at him, bewildered, because he's pretty sure that's what _he_ was supposed to say, but yes, Dustin legitimately looked guilty for whatever he had supposedly done. "After Cam…" Dustin trailed off, curling a fist and jabbing the air a few times to illustrate 'went psycho on your ass', "I didn't…_we_ didn't really ever apologize and you…" Dustin frowned, and sat up abruptly, forcing him to follow, "you helped me. You explained and it…" he ran a distracted hand through his hair, staring at the floor, "I never really said thank you." He looked back up at the crimson ranger, tugging at a random curl, "And then with everything that happened I just sort of forgot that you were going there to…you just wanted someone."

He stopped pulling at the rebel curl but Hunter couldn't tear his eyes from it, because he knew what was coming next, knew that he had been angry but had already let it slide off him so why did Dustin want to bring it up again because he was _fine, _he was _fine_, and it didn't matter anyway, nothing mattered accept Blake and subsequently the world, but _his_ feelings didn't really matter because what had they gotten him anyway?

Unaware, Dustin continued, sticking a hand into his chest and digging for all that concern he had buried a long time ago.

"So even though you pretend you're not mad, and even if you're really _not_, I figured that…you really _did_ want to make it work." Dustin toyed with the strand again, thoughtlessly twining it through his fingers, "And even if you weren't sad, you were probably lonely." The fingers stilled and Hunter looked back up again, not knowing if his face was bearing the same schooled look of smugness he had set to default.

By the sad look on Dustin's face, he probably wasn't. "And that's…that's something I have a lot of experience with," he admitted quietly, as though saying it any louder would shatter them both…and _wow_ he was getting a little too stupid for…damn it he can't even think of something sarcastic to say when Dustin's looking so genuinely…damn him. Damn him for being so loveable and damn him for being so undemanding and _damn_ whoever the hell abandoned this kid because he is just too _nice_ for that.

And then to justify his inner ramblings, Dustin gave him a timid smile, scratching the back of his head to hide the nervous fidgeting. "I just wanted you to know I'm on your side man. Like, if you need me…or if you don't it's cool but like…"

Hunter, finally getting off his ass and doing _some_ of the work for this reconciliation cut in smoothly, ending Dustin's ramble. "Thank you, Dustin."

It wasn't the gushy, destroying heart-to-soul thing he had imagined, he hadn't admitted anything Dustin had just sort of…known, and…

Maybe this…sharing thing wasn't as bad as he thought it was. That didn't mean he was going to throw himself completely into it but…it was nice having someone on "his side".

Dustin smiled brightly, the only warning Hunter got before he was once more tackled to the ground, though this time in a much more caring manner, yellow-clad arms wrapped around his back in the most fraternally loving manner. Hunter gave an overdramatic sigh but reciprocated the hold fondly, paying no heed to the added weight of the yellow ranger.

"You don't even have to do any talking," Dustin murmured excitedly, rubbing his face against Hunter's shoulder, "And my lips, super sealed, even to Cam, just…let me in man." Hunter smiled and patted the back of Dustin's head affectionately, somehow the yellow ranger discerning the action as the approval it really was and he squeezed tighter, thoroughly pleased.

Hunter was willing to blame endorphins for missing the door opening, he could admit he was pretty caught in the moment, but he snapped out of it when he heard Blake's bag drop, _again_, and he and Dustin both turned in time to see the navy ranger looking rather queasy, borrowed pillow in hand.

Well…Hunter had to give him credit for loyalty, even in the face of mind scaring.

"…it's not what it looks like." He offered, shrugging indifferently, and Dustin gave him a confused look. Because _obviously_ they couldn't be doing anything but hugging.

"What does it look like?"

Hunter couldn't help it; he threw his head back and laughed.

And then he laughed some more, minutes later when Blake dropped the pillow and stated, "You broke my brother."

Because sometimes, you just _have_ too.

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Endnotes:

I bet you guys thought you were going to get some Shane this week. _Pero nooooo,_ instead we get fluffy, fluffy goodness.

This was a terrifically fun chapter to write, though I am beginning to feel for poor Blake.

Thank you to everyone who reviewed last chapter! Five people this time, new record! *Happily dances all about*

I actually had to split up the paragraph. This makes me indescribably happy.

1. Hi animenut2003, you're more than welcome. I'm always happy to supply the world with a little more Dustin and a little more Dustin oneliner's. I will do my best to keep you entertained.

2. RAWR, RAWRRRR! I make offerings of Blake awkwardness to you! And on a different note, before there were two versions of the story the chapters were about 5,000 words long, on average, accept for Chapter 30 because Dustin wouldn't stop _thinking_ but ever since I started up version B, 'A's' chapters have condensed to about 4,000 to 4,500. This chapter, and last chapter were around 4,500, so yeah, it's a little shorter.

3. You…yin-yang69combo, have made my month. I feared that with two versions I would end up repeating myself so hearing that they work together sends me into a happy dance anew. Ps, you're awesome.

4. Rogue, I'm glad Shane's part turned out alright. It was difficult finding the right balance of lovestruck while making it obvious he wasn't himself without getting _too_ out there, so thanks…again…double thanks! \

5. ValkyrieNyght, you always make me feel awesome *shuffles feet*, shucks lady I think you've got mad skillZ too. Seriously, your Shane in a nutshell is…well, that's him. Everyone needs some loving, especially considering their occupation, and I think that the potion just sort of nudged Shane into feeling something he desperately needs but can't ask for. That's why he gave into it so easily. The same can be said for Hunter. He would _like_ to be wanted for who he is but didn't really realize it until he was receiving it, he figures that out and deems it as a weakness, and therefore he avoids it. That's how he survives.

…I think there were other words I was going to put, but they have escaped me at this point.

…It's November, in the story. That'll get established later, but just so you know.

Until next time.


	42. Cool

Chapter 42

Cool

I don't own West Side Story.

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So there's a reason people in love; real love, not the fake, dramatized, commercial version of it, but legitimate love are so freaking happy all the time. Now all those couples, the ones that had been together for a long time that keep telling the same mushy stories and sit on the same side of the table, now Shane can't make fun of them. Because he understood them. He understood why they were _always_ so content and he knew; life wasn't always a picnic, things didn't always work out for them, there were troubles and trials but they worked through them because of that undeniable almost mythical, fairy tale like bond that connected them.

Shane had thought, still kind of did, that true love was a bit of a hoax. He understood companionship and he…recognized that Cam and Dustin had something special; but love, _real_ love, as people so called it, was built up to be this huge, life-changing, grandiose thing that just didn't seem attainable. It didn't even seem _plausible_. It had to be just some concept that the romantics created or that the media mass-produced and shoved down everyone's throats as a way to turn a profit. It was forever elusive but society would be encouraged to keep trying to keep searching for "the one".

…That wasn't to say that Shane didn't hope to find a special someone of his own. Someone who he was greatly fond of who, through some bizarre turn of events also happened to kind've like him too. Someone who could be his best friend who would also like to indulge in…_other_ things. Someone to fight off the void of loneliness and with which to raise a family.

_That_ was love. Real life love, the kind of love that most people experienced.

Soul mates, true love, the idea of it was too…unrealistic.

And then he drank one stupid love potion and suddenly it wasn't.

He wanted to say that the potion was simply an exaggeration, a euphoric high of emotions, but that was only partially true. It didn't inspire anything too out of reach, it _wasn't_ unattainable. It was simply a feeling.

It was simply love.

Except love wasn't as simple as he had thought it would be.

Part of him wished that it had been any one else but Hunter, because, well, it's _Hunter_, and they _just_ started hanging out, but part of him is ridiculously glad for it, because it's _Hunter_, and it made it easier to compare before and after and not get confused in the mess of it.

"True" love (he can't help but think of it sarcastically because it's the only real defense he has left before he lost it and punched a wall) was…exhilarating. They didn't even do much (Hunter wouldn't let him, thank God), but Shane had gotten close, touched him, embarrassed himself in public a little (he's only seen Kelly once since then but the measured look she gave made him feel like one of Cam's science experiments), but mostly he just occupied the same room as Hunter.

But somehow that was enough. Because Hunter…he had been _Hunter_, strong and blond and stubborn and sarcastic and mean and all these facets that were both frustrating and interesting as hell, every little nuance and Shane had just soaked it up, greedily, desperate for more. It had been like…like Hunter had never really been _there_ before, not really, and suddenly, look, there's Hunter and he's _everything_. He's everything and anything and somehow Shane surrendered every piece of himself to the crimson ranger and he didn't really care about it. It didn't bother him how open and needy he had been, how…dependent, because he knew Hunter had his back, that as long as Hunter was there it would be okay and…

It was strange. Thinking about Hunter so much, more than he had ever thought of him before, like it was natural. Like it was normal.

It didn't bother him as much as it _could_ have, because he knew it was a potion and once Cam had mixed up the antidote it was gone, just, _woosh_, like it had never happened at all, but what was _really_ bothering him, what was stubbornly clinging to the back of his mind…

He missed it.

He missed it so _damn_ much.

It had…it had given him a purpose, but more than that it had…even if it was unrequited it made him feel _alive_, complete. He had thought that saving the world took all his effort; all his energy and focus and anything else he could manage to fit in, friendship, school work, it was all icing, but then he got to taste this…_thing_, this great, supposedly mythical _thing_ and it's real and it's…it's probably the greatest feeling in the world. And he knew love could burn, that it could hurt and be agonizing and just _not_ work out, not work at all, but even that bad stuff, even if he felt only the awful side of love…

It was still living beyond what he was doing now. It was still…it was like a level of involvement that he didn't have. Like he hadn't really experienced life until he had loved someone and he wanted that feeling back so badly that he was tempted to somehow find another love potion, because it had…felt so much…_better_ than what he had now.

He hadn't realized he had just been going through the motions.

But that's what it felt like now that he looked back on it. Every moment _before_, it didn't count, and even though it was Hunter, which is weird and…just strange, he still missed it.

He couldn't decide if it was worse, because it was Hunter. Romantically speaking he hadn't really ever been interested in guys, but somehow that hadn't mattered with the potion. Of course dark ninja magic was nothing to sniff at but wouldn't something that had been drilled into you, something you had always believed stick with you just a little bit? He hadn't even blinked, hadn't cared _at all_ that Hunter was a guy. That he didn't _like_ guys, that he _wasn't_ gay.

It was just…Hunter.

The body hadn't mattered. The housing, the outside…Hunter could have been transformed into a guinea pig himself and Shane probably wouldn't have cared, because it wasn't Hunter's body he liked it was _Hunter_, inside, he adored. That's what he had worshiped, needed, _loved_.

And Shane wanted…he wanted to feel that again. He didn't like this…this loneliness he had settled into and while he knew searching for love was a long shot, he could at least _try_.

_Damn it_, this hadn't been important before.

Why hadn't he figured it out when Cam had gotten Dustin or Blake and Tori pledged themselves to each other? Now he was alone, and granted, Hunter was too, but…

He doesn't know what to think of Hunter now. He knew what he thought of him _before_; and it's pretty much the same _now_, and that Hunter was bi, but he _wasn't_, and…he shouldn't worry about these kind of things anyway, they didn't matter. He wanted someone he could share his ranger business with, but aside from Hunter there wasn't anyone…he would just have to stay alone for now. Because even if…even if he didn't care about the body; and he'd like to think he wouldn't, it was_ Hunter_, who didn't like him all that much anyway, beyond amusement sake, and the team's sake, so there wasn't any point in lingering on it.

Did that thought actually depress him? That he wasn't interesting enough or _whatever_ enough for Hunter to…but what's the point anyway? It would just be settling, for both of them. He didn't really _like_ Hunter all that much, well he did, but not…not body, mind and soul worshiping like he had before, not even something _kind've_ like that, though strangely enough he doesn't even care anymore, he just wanted that _feeling_…

So he thought about Hunter, since he was on such a roll and didn't look like he'd be thinking about anything else anytime soon _anyway_, thought about how he came to be.

The crimson ranger started off evil; turned good, turned evil again (against his will), tried to destroy his brother (also against his will), saw the light, joined the team, hit on Dustin, hit on _Cam_, then hit on Dustin again, got beaten up for his troubles, then pulled Shane out of his spiraling stupidity-induced depression and he's just been kind've …chilling ever since. It's like whatever they've done, everything they've thrown at him and Lothor's thrown at him didn't matter, it all just rolled off him like…nothing. The only thing that was important to him was Blake but…

Shouldn't he have gotten angry at some point? Or accusing? Shouldn't he…shouldn't he be more bitter? Why? Why was he so apathetic?

Had he even been genuinely interested in Dustin or Cam? Because he hadn't fought for them, hadn't even tried, didn't even care that they canceled him out of their arrangement. Shane had yet to see the blond even mention the fact that Cam had played him, or had _tried_ to, or that Dustin…because it hadn't mattered to him. So why did he try? Why did he reach out for them or even mention it to Shane if he wasn't committed to it? Why even bother at all? Was he…did he know? Was he just trying to help (in his bizarre Hunter way)? Like he saw it coming from miles away so he figured, what the hell, visual demonstration is better than just talking or…

But no, he had been surprised too. And then he'd been _exasperated_, and while Shane had spent a majority of that conversation confused, he knew that underneath all the annoyance that Hunter had been hurt.

Because while it wasn't all that surprising for Lothor to betray his trust, Cam was a different story, and this was a completely different and far more dangerous territory. Lothor only attacked on the battlefield. Cam…under Shane's persuasion, had betrayed Hunter on a more intimate level. In hindsight it had been completely uncalled for. He never should have suggested it; he never should have _allowed_ it to happen. It had just been…change, having another red on the team and that was a threat and then Dustin, his best friend, his little brother, and Shane thought for a freak second he would lose him to this other leader, lose the entire team to Hunter because he had brought all these shining ideas, so far outside the scope of anything Shane had been able to think of and he just wanted to go _back_, to latch on to the way things were before, where he knew his footing.

He knew it was simpering and petty and yeah, he felt bad about it.

Hunter was a fighter, scrappy, stubborn _bastard_ who didn't abandon a teammate and didn't stop fighting until all the bad guys were down. Shane had been; he could admit this now, slightly intimidated by him, so he refused, for the longest time, to see him as a person. He kept the blond at a distance, didn't think about how things would affect him because he always appeared to be so unshakable. It didn't matter what Shane _did,_ there was nothing, _nothing_ he could do that would hurt Hunter.

But he had been stupid. And wrong, and easily fooled by Hunter's mask.

Hunter was just like everyone else. He had feelings but he was just so used…he _expected_ to be abused, so he didn't care when it happened. Like his sole purpose in life was to be the punching bag of others.

And the worst part is that it had clearly happened so often that he didn't bother to stand up for himself anymore. Not for things that weren't absolutely vital. _That's_ what really bothered Shane, whenever he's brave enough to think about it. Because he had fallen for that.

It's almost funny to think about it…how Hunter's chosen line of defense seemed to be more like an open invitation.

"_Hurt me, come on, I dare you to try. I don't feel, it doesn't matter, do your **worst**."_

And they did.

They all did.

And he suffered for it.

Or _would_ have suffered for it, had he allowed such things to happen to him.

It made Shane wonder why Hunter had bothered reaching out to him at all. Probably because he had never outright abused him, but with all that…how could he still want to help? And he _had_ legitimately helped. He would give Shane a verbal (or when needed, physical) smack on the head when he got too dour, or focused on the wrong things. He kept him in line (when he needed it), offered his expertise and his time whenever Shane was feeling lonely and there was nothing Shane could really throw at him that he couldn't handle. Hunter made time for him. He kept him from embarrassing himself in public.

He was a friend.

And maybe that's what he was trying to gain. Trust was inherent on the team; it was a necessity, they backed each other up in combat, helped each other, never abandoned a team mate, on the battlefield they were a nearly indestructible unit. But outside their tactile engagements it was a much different story. There was still trust; affection, they were friends, but they all…_all_ of them had issues with trusting their emotions to each other. With the possible exception of Tori, but she's remarkably attuned to herself so she doesn't really count. They were close, they were friends, but Hunter didn't let his walls down for anyone but Blake.

Reaching out to Shane was his way of rectifying that. It was mutually beneficial.

Now _that_ made sense to Shane. Not that Hunter was too selfish to be motivated otherwise, just that with the way he conditioned himself…it added up. Now Hunter was committed to this choice of action and Shane needed to return the favor. He needed to be a better friend, which meant that they needed to talk. It was unavoidable, but at least they weren't going to be stewing over the love potion incident. The potion had made him privy to Hunter's strengths, aware of his greater assets but it didn't change anything. At least, not between _them_. Shane would keep the personal alterations to himself. They weren't important.

He would briefly label this course of action as a distraction, something to keep his attention occupied from the gaping hole in his chest. But since that wound was just something he was going to become accustomed to, a kind of lacking that would simply become infused with his being; he supposed really everything could be called a distraction from now on, so it in turn, wasn't.

_Living is a distraction? A little overdramatic, don't you think?_

Ridiculously so. He was moping. Red rangers didn't mope, they fixed things. That's what you do when something was broken. You fixed it or you replaced it.

…or you waved your hands around really fast and made _swishing_ noises until you distracted yourself from it. Metaphorically speaking.

Option three would have to work for now.

For the…love problem, not the Hunter thing. The Hunter thing he would get on right now.

Now.

As in, not later.

…_now_.

…

…so he should probably stop thinking about how awesome the crimson ranger's skin felt.

Because that could probably get a little distracting.

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Hunter was occupying himself with sit ups. They were a much more productive use of his time than the English homework he had abandoned on the coffee table and working out your core was always important. Besides, exercising always helped clear his head anyway and he had to stay in the apartment.

Well…he didn't, but he had a feeling that Shane's mulling quota had been met and he wanted to be in a place that offered them the privacy that the multitude of cameras at Ninja Ops just couldn't provide. He didn't know how this conversation would turn out…he honestly didn't care. Or, he honestly…he wasn't honestly _sure_ if he didn't care, but after intimate-pillow-confessions-time with Dustin he wasn't sure if he was prepared to take something to heart. It would be much easier to blow it off. It probably wouldn't happen, Shane would demand some kind of reaction, but he could try.

Opening up was still a foreign concept to him. To Blake it was unnecessary, to Dustin…it was natural, he guessed, at least moderately so because somehow that mo-fo had sncuk into his good graces, kind've like he did with _everyone_ so for him it was only a matter of time, but to Shane…

When it came to disclosing more personal matters towards the red ranger there was still a fine balance. Hunter was his equal (and if Shane forgot that he had a fist that could happily support this point for him) so sharing was…expected, maybe, but sharing _too_ much…weakness, that's what it really was, and he didn't _want_ to do it but he _should_ but even then he couldn't do too much or he would compromise himself. The good news was that he had the advantage as far as emotional things go, because Shane had been far more receptive to the sharing concept after the epic love of Cam/Dustin was united and _then_ this love potion thing happened so…

Yeah, it was fairly safe to say he had the upper hand at the moment.

So there was one thing.

Solid knocks against the front door broke Hunter out of his mild reverie and he rolled to his feet, snatching up his discarded t-shirt and re-clothing himself as he strode over to it, already certain from the strength and number of knocks that it was Shane on the other side. God he was good. He _was_ good. He wasn't sure why he thought they would be doing this today; it had just felt like it was time. Like he had woken up and knew that it couldn't be pushed off any longer. His body _knew_. And here Shane was. Before they had joined the team Hunter would have been concerned with how well he knew the red ranger, but now he could see that those feelings were unreasonable. It was only practical for him to be familiar with his leader. It made sense. If Shane ever turned against them he would be glad for his expertise.

This excess knowledge was nothing to be worried about.

He unlocked the deadbolt but hesitated before undoing the chain that would make entrance into the apartment completely opposition-free (thunder ranger aside) and tapped a finger against the door frame, leaning closely.

"Are you evil?" he asked, sounding like enough of a joke to get away with it but legitimately asking because…eh, it never hurt. Not that he expected a brain-washed Shane to actually answer yes, though it would be refreshing.

…nah, it would probably put him more on edge.

There was a hesitation before Shane figured out he should actually answer, if merely to humor Hunter, "…nope."

…that sounded about right.

He pulled the door chain off the track and quickly sidestepped to allow Shane entrance, ignoring the _"Really, that's how you check for evil?"_ look he received (or some variation thereof) and shrugged his shoulders, closing and locking the door once all not-brainwashed red rangers were safely inside. He re-did the chain too. He wasn't sure what was going to happen but taking precautions for Blake's mental health wasn't completely uncalled for. He thought he would never hear the end of his brother's whining after Dustin's pillow-scapades.

As Shane weighed his options for the sitting/standing arrangement Hunter cut across to the kitchen, grabbing two sodas out of the fridge for a multitude of reasons; the first being Shane would feel less inclined to leave once Hunter "splurged" on him with one of his and Blake's hard-earned beverages, the second being the red ranger would actually feel bad about spilling anything on their hopeless excuse for a carpet, so rash moves _wouldn't_ be made, and the third because he was freaking thirsty and he didn't hate Shane enough not offer him some kind of refreshment.

Yep, look at him getting all hospitable.

Never thought he'd see the day.

He tossed the skater his beverage just as Shane decided to sit on the couch after all (like he _always_ did, was the contemplation really necessary?) and settled down on the other side, leaving plenty of room between them for Shane's minor homophobic tendencies. Or maybe he was just repressed; now _that_ would be something to talk about. The red ranger didn't know he'd enjoy appreciating the male persuasion so much and now he was going to level with/whine to/generally bemoan his predicament.

Or maybe he would apologize, say they were cool, and then move on, and this would just end up being a funny little anecdote to tell in the future when they were real buddy-buddy.

"_Hey, remember that time you fell in love with me?"_

"_Totally, I wanted your sexy-sexy body **so** bad."_

"_You tried to buy me flowers."_

"_Only to prove my absolute love and devotion to you…and your sexy-sexy body."_

"_Yeah…good times."_

"_Indeed."_

…perhaps he was overestimating Shane's ability to take a joke.

…just a _little_ bit.

"We've treated you like crap."

The declaration was so far off base from anything Hunter had been expecting he had to physically restrain himself from doing a double take, as though that would assist any hearing inconsistencies, and cocked his head to the side, fingers twitching in want to rub at his ear.

He stared at the red ranger curiously, wondering what the hell he was going on about. "What?"

Guilty eyes met his (Because Shane was the epic king of guilty eyes) and the red ranger sighed, tilting his head in that sorrowful way that was straying a little too close to pity for Hunter to be comfortable.

Shane elaborated, "We, the team, me, we've treated you badly. I'm sorry."

…well…_yeah_, but clearly Hunter hadn't been crying himself to sleep over it so he's not entirely sure why Shane felt the need to address it _now_. It was water under the bridge, the function of Hunter in team Ninja Storm, and he was okay with it. But he had a feeling that his explanation would not be well received by the red ranger so he kept it to himself, hoping that Shane will somehow bring this back round to the love potion incident.

Really, Hunter actually _wanted_ to talk about that now.

Sadly, Shane didn't look like he was going to be very receptive to a change in subject _either_, so Hunter settled for echoing his initial query and hoping that logic and reason would re-instate themselves.

"…what?"

Cue Shane, more guilt and sorrowful eyes. Truly a master. "You came into this willing to trust us, willing to work with us, but instead of treating you like a friend we treated you like crap, and I'm sorry."

_Danger, danger, sensitive subject alert with person of semi-authoritative and knowledgeable position, suggest evasive action_.

But Shane was on a roll,"Because even if you act like you don't care, you do, and…we'll treat you better, from now on."

And because _now_ would be the time to deflect and move on his mouth decided to get in on the action, saying the first thing that popped into his mind, "…have you been talking to Dustin?"

…unfortunately it was _not_ a distraction.

Seriously, Dustin was a schemer; he should have seen that coming. Of _course_ Dustin wouldn't keep a secret, not from Shane, the super-est-super hero _ever_. He probably hopped right on over (and Hunter wouldn't put actually hopping past him) to spill the news to Shane the moment they finished mocking Blake for his 'delicate hetero sensibilities'.

…at least, that's what _he_ did. Dustin just laughed along with him, but the thought was nice.

Curiously Shane appeared to be just as surprised as Hunter was and leaned forward, gripping the side of the couch as he pressed the crimson ranger for information. "What's Dustin know?"

Hunter gave him an incredulous look, "…seriously, you guys didn't plan this?"

They _had_ to have planned this. It was too coincidental otherwise.

Shane frowned and furrowed his eyebrows, not pleased by the idea that Dustin was in on something he wasn't, "What's Dustin _know_?"

Hunter glared at him, he was going to call shenanigans on this, "There's no way in _hell_-"

Shane interrupted him, finally vocalizing the thought that had bugging Hunter since the beginning, "What are you talking about?"

"What am I-" Hunter sputtered, literally _sputtered_ (he hadn't known he was capable of that), "What the hell are _you_ talking about? I thought you were going to be freaking out over the love potion thing!"

Because that would've made _sense_._  
_

Shane blinked in surprise, then waved it off, "I did that, and then I realized _this-_"

No, no, shenanigans, this was stupid, Shane wasn't just deflecting the issue he was ignoring it _completely_ and throwing _this_ back at Hunter as a way of dodging his supreme aversion to man-sex and man-sex-like ideas and temporary mindset. And _that_…damn, that pissed him off. He didn't want his issues… (no, this _wasn't_ an issue) being used to someone else's advantage. That wasn't cool; he had thought more of Shane.

He glared at the red ranger and crossed his arms, putting on his no-bullshit face. "I really want to know what one has to do with the other."

Shane sighed and gave him an exasperated look, "I was thinking about _you_."

Hunter opened his mouth to respond and then immediately snapped it shut as soon as the words dawned on him, anger dying down almost immediately despite how much his mind screamed for him to do otherwise because for once…he was really, really confused. He's not sure how he felt about someone obviously thinking long and hard about _him_, let alone how to respond to it.

So he settled for changing the subject and working with an emotion he _could_ get a handle one, that would give him back the upper hand.

He brought back his anger to get guilt. Once he could guilt Shane the red ranger would _have_ to back down and they won't have to talk about this again. Or, Shane won't get to do this a _first_ time. It wasn't like with Dustin because he was…more naive and didn't know better, would accept and let go just to keep Hunter happy in the now. Shane would analyze and understand the long-term effects; alter his opinions forever, adapt to Hunter, to these responses and he _didn't_ want that, he didn't want to let someone in who could so much damage.

But friendship was a two-way street, and while he had become more familiar with the inner workings of Shane, the skater had schooled himself on the intricacies of Hunter and he could see that the blond wanted him to back off.

So naturally, he didn't.

The red ranger had a soothing (Hunter hated it, on principal) tone, leveling with Hunter as he usually did during combat. "I was thinking about how you never get angry for yourself, how you're never surprised when we slight you, how you never _care_."

"It doesn't matter," Hunter snapped, grip tightening against his arms but he didn't dare look away, didn't want to give Shane cause to continue.

The skater gave him a patient look, "Yes, it _does_. We're a team, a family, and everyone-"

Hunter uncrossed his arms and pointed at the red ranger threateningly, "I swear if you say we should all love each other I'm going to punch you in the throat right _now_."

Life wasn't like some kid's show; it didn't have a story book ending. Not everyone came out winners.

Shane held up his hands, placating and immediately dropped them when he saw that they had the opposite effect.

Yeah, Hunter's rage could not be contained by mere _hand gestures._

Shane frowned as though he could hear his thoughts and stared at him levelly. "…no one's happiness should have to be sacrificed."

Hunter scoffed at the idea immediately, getting back into the old swing of things. "How do you know I'm not happy?"

"Are you?"

He froze, not expecting the response.

…That wasn't fair. Of course he was(n't), did it matter? No it didn't matter, because if it had _mattered_ then someone would have cared before _now_ but it didn't and everyone was _fine_, and he didn't care so he _was_ happy because there was no way for him to _not_ be happy because he didn't care, he _didn't_ care, he _didn't __**care…**_

His jaw clenched unwillingly and he turned his head away, staring at the far wall. "I'm fine."

_Weakness_.

He could hear Shane lean forward, "Fine's not…"

"Fine is _fine_," he spat, glaring back at the other ranger so he wouldn't come any closer, "there's nothing wrong with it." It was the story of his life. Was Shane going to look down on that too? "You're making a big deal out of nothing."

Shane frowned; mild aggravation nothing compared to the storm Hunter shouldn't be brewing up right now. "I'm making a big deal out of emotions you _should_ be feeling? I'm concerned, sorry…"

That was _it_.

"Then why the _hell_ did it take you so long?" He exploded, only catching himself as soon as the words came out; glancing over at Shane's startled reaction before he turned away.

Shit…shit, shit, shit, he didn't mean to say that and he abandoned the couch altogether, pulling away so Shane wouldn't see his surprise. So this denial thing wasn't really working, but he _had_ been happy. He had been fine all his life, all he needed was Blake and he was good. So why did he want more now? Why did he feel…why did he feel anything? He shouldn't, this _shouldn't_…

Shane had stood up behind him but was keeping his distance, studying the back of the crimson ranger as though it held all his secrets. "I didn't care before."

And _that_ shouldn't hurt as much as it did, it shouldn't even register, but Hunter felt like he had been punched in the gut for some odd reason and he kept his back towards Shane because he had no idea how much of this was playing out on his face.

Locking the door had been a bad idea; he would do anything for a distraction.

Thankfully Shane didn't move forward, but he still _kept __**talking**_. "I didn't care because you intimidated me," he announced, "I didn't care because I was afraid you were better than me, that you would take my team from me, that I would lose them to you. So I hated you, for a bit." There was another sigh, sorrow, not exasperation, guilt, over _Hunter_, though he shouldn't be special because it was about time, really, he wasn't…

"But that was never your goal." Shane finished, understanding, "You don't want trouble. You…"

"If you say "want somebody to love" I. Will. _Hurt_. You." Hunter ground out, using the joke to regain some of the ground he had lost in this conversation, which didn't happen, it _never_ happened. _He_ was supposed to have the upper hand, _why_ had he let it come this far, _why_ had he allowed himself to be verbally dissected, _why_ was he even admitting (physically because he couldn't do it vocally) to the truth in _any_ of Shane's words, he hadn't done that _before_.

Shane took a step forward and Hunter tensed, ready to sprint towards the door if he had to. "Family," Shane offered, and Hunter felt like he had gotten hit again because he _had_ a family and he had already _lost_ part of it so why would he ever bother with _more_ and _damn it Shane stop talking._ "You just want to be finally be able to put your guard down without being afraid of getting hurt."

…And all of these, despite Hunter's protests, would be incredibly accurate assumptions to make. They weren't…mysteries. Sure, Hunter wouldn't talk about it, but he hadn't _hidden_ it…okay, so he had, with his indifferent attitude but…

"You should go now," He muttered, hands loose at his sides as his mind buzzing with new information. He had to retreat, he needed time to think, or something, or not think, it depended. He turned back around to look at the other ranger's reaction, waiting to see if he was now "loved" enough to have his wishes be respected.

There was a hesitation, Shane looked like he was about to object but thought better of it, nodding resignedly before making his way towards the door. He halted right in front of it, calling over his shoulder. "I am _so_ sorry."

And he was, Hunter couldn't deny that.

The crimson ranger didn't bother to look his way as he made his exit. He didn't look up from _that_ particular spot on the wall until he had to let Blake back in an hour later, complaining about getting oil on his clothes.

Living. Right. He should do that.

…and now_ he_ was going to be the one avoiding the other red ranger wasn't he?

Go figure.

Story of his life.

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Endnotes:

So…I didn't think I would be finishing this chapter as quickly as I did. For those of you who don't know, I was having issues with version 'B's' chapter 6, and this one got put on the backburner while I was busy restraining myself from throwing things at my monitor.

But _this_ version decided to play nice with me and there was much joy and happiness for all. Smooth sailings, this version. That's what happens when the gears are turning.

Now, enough babble, onto the chapter.

Super sized thanks are in order for everyone who reviewed last chapter! RAWR, always happy to help, here is some Hunter angst to appease your enthusiastic glory! Rogue, yeah, I wanted to fit in some Blake kissin' too, sadly I just couldn't make it work out. And the secret keeping? While they are friends I doubt Hunter would confide in Dustin anything that was _too_ terrible. But who knows, perhaps it'll come back as a plot device. Yin-yang69combo, much obliged. Perhaps man kisses are in the future. Valkyrie, I see your point but…it's a pillow fight. Like…that's the best Dustin can do. Even if all-out brawling was still an option Dustin would still probably go for the pillows, because he's never really _that_ angry, just miffed, and pillows are kind've his thing anyway. Though I appreciate your concern. (As does Hunter).

I'm not entirely sure if this is an entirely accurate response from Hunter or not, but it _is_ chapter 42 and sure, he _could_ have stonewalled Shane, but…it was time.

I know I've been saying that a lot lately, but…well, there's just no better way to say it. This story's starting to get up there lengthwise, and it needs to start acting its age.

*shrug* watcha gonna do?

Until next time.


	43. Run Away

Chapter 43

Run Away

I don't own Spamalot.

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The punching bag hadn't done anything to earn the malicious barrage of fury drenched fist-smashings that Hunter was delivering unto it's red, padded glory (aside from having the misfortune of being designed for such occupations), but the blond found that despite _not_ being the source of his anger it was still quite easy to vent out his frustrations on the poor inanimate object. The fact that it was red helped. Also, because of it's location in Ninja Ops Hunter could humor the assumption that it was Cam's by proxy, and since _their_ relationship pretty much thrived on not being nice to each other Hunter could _almost_ convince himself that everything was business as usual, as opposed to…this.

The next punch to the bag was delivered with a little more force than necessary.

Not that it was going to tell anyone.

This ignoring crap…he's beginning to see why it failed for all the other rangers so miserably. It really wasn't doing anything for him. He _wanted_ it to, _oh_-how he wanted it to, but _certain_ conversations kept attacking his mind whenever he was least expecting it, leaving him frickin' _thinking_ for hours. It was becoming difficult to sleep, and he _loved_ sleeping. It had been one of his favorite pastimes. He didn't have to do anything, just lie down and…

And now Shane had taken even _that_ away from him.

The _bastard_.

Stupid Shane.

Stupid Shane and his stupid Shane face.

Stupid Shane and his stupid, _stuuupid_ face that was all, "_Allow me to destroy your gruff, bad-boy, apathetic image with my __**uberous**__ amounts of __**love**__ and __**caring**__."_

…okay, so maybe Hunter was pushing it with the love part, but-

He was getting off track. The point is that Shane was stupid. He was _supposed_ to mope about and be confused about a love potion so that Hunter could coddle him and then have a laugh at his expense, and then the crimson ranger would smack him upside the head and they would be cool, but _instead_ the stupid leader had gone and turned the tables on him and now _he_ was the one with confusing emotional times that he _shouldn't _be having, and no one was laughing.

To be fair, if they had Hunter would have punched them.

He was so _mad_. And he's not even sure why, it wasn't like the "hate on Hunter" thing was private knowledge. It would make sense that _someone_ would eventually apologize and then he could be let in on team-happy-fun-time, but for some odd reason when Shane had-

_Gah_, it doesn't make any sense. He hadn't felt this way when Dustin had apologized. He had welcomed _that_, so why was he freaking out now? What difference did it make? So what, now Shane was going to treat him like a decent human being with feelings and stuff, and pay attention to his…emotional needs and mushy things like that, and take care of him and-

No, no, no, no, scratch the last part stupid mind, he didn't word that right. Shane would take care of…his _social_ interactions, there, not him, not-

Was that why he was being so bothered by this? Because of a mental lapse? Because he was making this out to be bigger than it actually was? Shane was just being himself, being a good leader and friend, because that's what Shane _did_ so why should Hunter be surprised that the red ranger suddenly felt bad about things that Hunter had never outwardly cared about? The playing field was changing, things were getting more serious and Hunter didn't like that. Before, when neither of them had really addressed Hunter's feelings on anything really deep or meaningful that concerned him everything was safe. Shane was a nice distraction, entertaining, dare he say, a good friend. But now that things were…what, more…normal, Hunter was…

He didn't even know. He didn't know _why_ and it was bugging the hell out of him. It was just Shane. All he did was address a matter that was…close to Hunter, and make amends for it. The crimson ranger really didn't have much room for complaint, he and Shane had worked through the red ranger's stupid issues plenty of times, and most of them were personal, so it was only fair that Shane would-

_He hates his stupid **face!**_

Why did he have to ruin a good thing? It had been a good thing right? Why couldn't he have just like…mentally addressed it and then like, altered his behavior to make up for the problems he saw. Treat Hunter better without actually _telling_ him about it. Hunter wouldn't have minded…okay, so he would have been a little suspicious at first but if Shane was as stubborn as Hunter _knew_ he was the red ranger would have just stuck to it until the blond was forced to accept it and…

And…

…Shane could change him.

He stopped, fist hovering inches away from the punching bag's surface as the thought snuck up on him, rendering him incapable of motion. He was too busy regulating the mess inside his head, cursing himself for letting ideas like that take him by surprise; he _should_ have been paying more attention…

Kind of like he should have been paying more attention to Shane.

Hunter had thought that _Dustin_ had snuck into his good graces but Shane had practically teleported there, settling himself in nice and comfortable before Hunter had even realized what was going on. That…that _bastard_ had completely lowered his defenses without him_ even realizing it_. That was the problem, _that's_ what bothered him. He hadn't even _realized_-

They were friends. And not just…like how he and Tori were friends but like, _good_ friends. Hunter actually _liked_ spending time with the stupid lug, despite his protests he looked forward to dealing with his tomfoolery (Dustin's word of the week) and when the skater wasn't busy being an absolute moron he was actually _really _good company and next to Blake…

What?

No, no, he was _not_ comparing his relationship with Shane to the one he had with Blake, it wasn't nearly as important, it didn't matter, it didn't matter…

He growled, probably, maybe, let out _some_ kind of carnal cry before letting out another series of punches against the innocent piece of work out equipment.

He couldn't just…_ignore_ something like that. Because now he knew, Shane _was_ important and he _did_ care about him and liked it when he was happy because that made _him_ happy and-

Wait, why was he thinking about…how had he strayed this far off topic? What, was he taking Shane's lead now and doing long, hard, creepy, thinking-about-other-people times so he could ignore his problems completely? Because _that_ had turned out so well. Or was he just deflecting? No, one did _not_ acknowledge they were deflecting when they deflected, it was kind've counter productive, you're just supposed to remain in blissful ignorance forever and ever and _ever-_

Or he…

And he…

When had his head become such a messed up place to be?

He gave the bag one last jab to let it know it hadn't won; he wasn't surrendering, before he leaned his forehead against the red material, using his arms to brace himself against the plastic-y cloth.

So…

Shane was important.

…_now that wasn't so bad was it?_

Only if ripping out a kidney while still being incredibly conscious wasn't painful.

…so yes.

Okay, Shane was important, but that wasn't anything to freak out about. _Everyone_ on the team was important, they were Power Rangers, if anything happened to them the fate of the world would be at stake. So it was reasonable for Shane to be important…except Hunter _knew_, and his subconscious knew, and his ego, and id, and super-ego, and whatever other sections of his mind that were capable of filing things away all _knew_ that Shane's importance was slightly greater than that of the average ranger leader. He was…important to _Hunter_. Because he was a friend.

…he was important enough to be ranked next to Blake.

…because he was…a…good friend?

A part of Hunter wanted desperately to label him as a 'best friend' but he had thrived in sarcasm for so long that he just couldn't dare do it and take himself seriously. It was too terrifying a concept.

Shane was an important friend.

…who Hunter cared about.

…who was capable of changing Hunter, maybe for the better. Who Hunter had already unknowingly adapted to, to make what they had work better…but also not, because changing for anyone else wasn't what he _did_ and it sure as hell wasn't what Shane did.

Shane was someone who Hunter wanted to have around, who Hunter actually sought out because being alone _wasn't_ better than being with Shane, because he was comfortable with him, entertained by him, respected by him…

…cared for, by him.

_Stupid, he cares about everyone_.

That same part from earlier wanted to insist that _maybe_ he was just a little bit different.

He brought his head back and whacked it against the bag, forehead aching but thoughts still resolute.

Shane could hurt him. Which was something he had tried desperately hard to make sure _couldn't _ happen; accept apparently he sucked at that as far as red ranger's were concerned. He hadn't seen Shane as a threat, and _now_ look at what he's got. Now, instead of witty banter and easy conversation Shane had…upped the ante. They had gone from superficial to an actual…_real_ friendship.

A _real_ friend. Someone who he could dump his problems on that wasn't Blake.

And as great as Dustin was…because Hunter couldn't _not_ consider Dustin a real friend now, he wasn't…Shane. Shane was different, not just because he was more grounded in reality (though that helped) he was just…

No. No, no, no, no, no.

No, no, no, _no, __**no!**_

That was enough of that for one day, he couldn't _handle_ anymore, he couldn't bother _thinking…_

So he didn't. He just went back to smacking the hell out of the poor punching bag until he was too tired to be able to think about anything clearly, intent on continuing his vicious attack until all he could do was drag himself home and pass out. Maybe then he could get his peaceful sleep back.

But fate was of a differing opinion, and smacked his plans down like the hopeless dreams they were.

"What did he do?"

He froze, steadying the bag after one of his more enthusiastic kicks and turned to see his brother hovering near the gym's entrance, clearly locking the door behind him as he made his way towards Hunter. He wore a bored but serious face, determination subdued but ever present in his eyes. Hunter knew that look, he knew that look all too well. Blake busted it out every time they had one of their few and far between discussions of a most serious and _painfully_ honest nature. They didn't happen often, but they _did_ happen, and somehow his brother managed to find the _one_ time that it would be the most inconvenient to engage in one.

Seriously, they had to be passing notes or something. This many heart-to-hearts did _not_ happen coincidentally.

Unless you were Hunter, in which case they _found_ you because they knew where they weren't wanted.

_Stupid feelings_.

He used to be able to handle these things better.

"Not you too," he grumbled, giving the bag one last halfhearted jab before turning to face his brother, wiping the accumulated sweat from his brow.

That got him a pissy frown that told him Blake would not be distracted by his comments and that further attempts to avoid or 'hide' from their conversation would not be allowed. No, Blake had now moved on to his 'bitch face' and would not be denied. He straightened his back and began ticking off points on his fingers.

"The door is locked, the others are busy, I convinced Cyber Cam to turn off the cameras…now what did _Shane say_?" He gave Hunter a challenging look, as though begging him to deny something had happened, and while Hunter knew his brother meant well, and like _hell_ was he going to let Shane mess up anything between he and Blake, it didn't make this conversation any easier.

He supposed he could've helped his case more if he had actually stuck to what he and Blake had originally been invited over for. Thanksgiving was just around the corner (not that he had really noticed because he and Blake rarely celebrated it) and Tori had suggested that they all get together to bake pies for the holiday as team bonding/warm-squishy-feelings-being-spread-around time.

…yeah, Hunter had lasted all of five minutes in the same room with Shane before he declared himself the pie-making anti-Christ and swiftly retreated (like a _real_ _man_)to do activities he could excel at that didn't require thinking. Which, in hindsight, was probably a terrible idea. He should've stuck with the pies.

At least pies didn't judge you.

He had thought he had been cool enough about it, but clearly if the others sent Blake to chat with him he wasn't as chill as he would have liked.

But back to the matter at hand.

What had Shane said?

"Nothing important," he insisted, which got him a scowl and an _"oh really, so that was someone else who ducked out of pie making like a pansy?"_-esque face that spread the scowling mood, and Blake crossed his arms across his chest, letting Hunter know that things were getting serious.

Hunter tried again, "Look, really, I'm just over-thinking it. You know how I am with relationships and…_feelings_ and stuff."

If anyone knew it was Blake, he had first hand experience with Hunter's emotional handicaps. But for some odd reason this only caused his brother to look more agitated, which pissed him off because it was _true_, he was just being a moron, but for all he knew his little brother's anger could be aimed at Shane now.

That would be nice.

Blake hesitated for a moment and shifted his weight, inquiring look in his eyes. "Is this about what happened with the love potion?"

_See_, he wasn't the only one who thought that made sense.

Hunter laughed and leaned against the punching bag, mock holding his ribs. "I wish."

Blake tilted his head and slowly moved forward, positioning himself on the other side of the bag. "So…it's not?"

"Nope."

Not even kind of.

"…for him."

The comment was subdued, quiet and dangerous just like Blake's true nature was, not the boisterous thing he put on for public but the ninja that was _always_ vigilant, and Hunter paused, studying his brother closely.

He did _not_ like where this was going.

"What's that mean?" he asked, his voice mimicking the same low tone despite his attempts to play at casual.

He had never had to deflect Blake before, but this wasn't territory they had ever touched on either.

Blake's face read no bullshit, he knew Hunter's mask too well. "But it is for you," he said bluntly, fully believing it.

Hunter laughed again, caught up in the absurdity of it all. "Did you hit your head?"

So Blake thought that _he_ was hung up on the love potion thing? That he missed his Shane slave/number one worshiper?

That's what it looked like.

Blake set his jaw, a frustrated reaction that only Hunter could goad from him. "I followed you," he explained, and immediately Hunter knew it was after he and Shane had left Storm Chargers that fateful day. "After what he…" _after he felt you up and scarred my poor, widdle eyeballs, _"I wanted to make sure he didn't…get close again."

Translation: he wanted to make sure Shane didn't get fresh again.

Hunter was not sure how he felt about his brother spying on him in his less fabulous moments.

…or more fabulous moments, depending on how you looked at it.

Blake's frown deepened, and his eyes flicked off to the side. "I saw what he did, and what you…" his gaze turned back, and this time he was certain, resolute. "You like him."

_You like him_.

Which in their messed up world was pretty much the equivalent for expressing your undying love for someone and pledging eternal devotion. Because "love" wasn't really a word the Bradley's could master, so they went with "like". Like how Blake "liked" Tori, or how their mom "liked" their dad.

Blake thought _he_ "liked" Shane, and while Shane _did_ build up a lot of unnecessary conflicting emotions Hunter was pretty damn sure it wasn't because he "liked" him and he was far too stubborn, and couldn't deal with thinking otherwise. Or he could, but then he would have to admit that he was willing to kill for someone other than Blake, and the thought of that terrified him.

But instead of letting any of _that_ babble out, like he normally _would_ have for Blake, he went with the first words that came out of his mouth which just _happened_ to be a deflection.

"…you _did_ hit your head."

The stunned and hurt look on Blake's face was quickly covered up, and despite it was his doing Hunter mentally vowed his hatred for Shane once more.

Bitch face engaged. "I'm your brother; the least you can do is-"

But he couldn't take it, he just- so he couldn't joke it off but _why_ did other people keep wanting to tell him how _he_ felt. He got it, he's not emotionally gifted, he lacked communication with his inner spirit or whatever mumbo-jumbo they wanted to call it, but he _was_ capable of discerning the little things. He wasn't completely _inept_.

But instead of addressing _those_ concerns, Hunter used the rage inspired by them and threw it back at Blake, less than eloquently. "Are you freaking delusional? Yeah, you know what, _fine_, I'm a little lonely, but I do _not_ have the hots for Shane."

He didn't want to deal with that right now.

Blake pushed forward, ignoring Hunter's personal bubble and crowding his space. "Can you seriously say that, I _saw-_"

"I don't know what you saw," Hunter growled, pushing at his chest, "but it sure as hell wasn't _that_."

"Then what's the problem?"

"Right now," Hunter barked, glaring at his sibling, "_you_."

There was a small silence, and Blake took a step back.

Hunter knew the moment he had said it that he had gone too far, crossed the line, and Blake immediately pulled away like he had been physically struck, looking wounded and angry. He left as quietly as he came, only his shoulder's voicing his betrayal, and soon Hunter was alone again, just like he wanted.

It wasn't as satisfying as he had hoped it to be.

Yeah…happy Thanksgiving. Family and friends and good times for all.

He was currently lacking in all of those, and it was his own damn fault. Only _he_ could pull that off so spectacularly.

Frustrated, he wailed on the punching bag again, trying to distract himself from the fact he would be going home to an empty apartment tonight. He didn't look up when he heard hurried footsteps pounding against the hallway floor, knew that with _that_ much concern and enthusiasm it had to be Dustin, a fact that was immediately confirmed when the yellow ranger burst into the room, covered in flour and mildly upset. So the others had been busy after all, busy waiting to see the outcome of an intimate Bradley moment. They had probably ditched pie duty as soon as Blake had left to go check on Hunter.

"Dude," Dustin began, glancing over his shoulder as though he could see Blake if he squinted really hard, regardless of the obstacle of _walls_, "did you and Blake _fight_?"

Hunter had to pause at the other's tone, Dustin saying this as though it was the most unbelievable thing in the world. They _were_ human, they fought, sometimes. He was saved from thinking up a proper response when Shane and Cam trailed into the room behind the mechanic, matching looks of concern striking something raw within Hunter, raising his hackles almost immediately.

"What happened?" Shane asked, because he was a stupid boy scout, leader-man who was concerned for everyone but himself, and _stupid_, and the red ranger better be really glad that Hunter had beat up this _stupid_ punching bag so much because he was really getting a hankering for beating up a certain someone's _face_.

"What happened?" Hunter echoed sarcastically, quiet but _pissed_. "_You_ happened." He lunged forward, thrusting a finger at Shane's chest. "You and your stupid _face_, and you're _stupid_…" he trailed off, realizing with the shocked look on their faces that he had allowed himself to be completely compromised by his emotions, lashing out from the sudden build up of people picking apart and analyzing _his_ insides. He wasn't used to this much attention, it had finally gotten to him.

He shook his head, suddenly weary and he sighed, trying to think of what to do. A hand gingerly groped at his arm, timid, and Hunter turned his attention to Dustin, who surprisingly enough looked the most collected and understanding of Hunter's three remaining teammates. It was…nice. The unflinching support there. Comfort. So Dustin wasn't the most aware person in the world, but he was honest, and earnest, and _wanted_ to help, and…he was Hunter's friend.

And he was also the only one that was currently willing to put up with him.

Feeling shaken but refusing to show it, Hunter grabbed Dustin's hand and pulled him out of the room, choosing to make a much more effective and safe retreat. Dustin caught on to what was happening a few seconds in and pulled ahead, guiding Hunter merrily as they made it to…wherever Dustin was going. He actually hadn't set a path in mind so it was good _someone_ had an idea.

…on the bright side, he had probably ruined Cam's night a _little_, so…there's _that_.

It didn't bring him as much comfort as he would have liked.

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Endnotes:

And…_this_ chapter.

You know, I was at a loss from where to go after chapter 42 for about ten seconds before Hunter kicked in, and then _this_ was written. It's short, but one of my favorites so far, balancing the surprisingly well received Hunter-angst with humor and, *gasp* plot movement.

Where we go from here, only Hunter knows.

On a less prominent note, it feels really nice to write about Thanksgiving when it actually _is_ November. Baby steps, but nice.

Thank you to everyone who reviewed last chapter! RAWR! If I had known the Hunter angst would be so appreciated I would have tried to thrown it in sooner. I am glad we are all in agreeance! Valkyrie, see, Hunter won't remain in the dark for very long. He _wants_ to be willingly ignorant but his no-bullshit nature doesn't really allow for that very well, which has lead to major-epic-angry-mind times…which leads to him making up times and faces and getting a little more frantic.

Frantic Hunter will not be permanent, but I think the visit is kind've nice.

Until next time.


	44. I Know Things Now

Chapter 44

I Know Things Now

I don't own Into the Woods…still.

But I really want to.

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He made a mistake.

Blake _knew_ he made a mistake, entering one of _those_ conversations with Hunter without planning it properly. Or without…allowing his emotions to get in the way, except he's never had to do either before now and he's never _had_ to keep himself in check but he supposed that considering the fact that they had never entered a set of circumstances that were anything like this before it was sort of understandable.

Still, he made a mistake.

He could accept that.

He shouldn't have let Hunter boss him out of the room, whether the crimson ranger had been aware of it or not that's what he had been doing, because _both_ of them were in unfamiliar territory. And because of the…alien nature of it all, strange boundaries, they both kind've acted like idiots. That wasn't an opinion, that was a fact. Hunter had tried to duck around his concerns and treat him like one of the others and he…he…had reacted badly.

In Hunter's defense, there had been a lot of buildup to lead to that particular reaction.

It wasn't…Blake wasn't against homosexuality. He supported Hunter. Gender shouldn't matter, love was love. Blake would like to think if Tori just happened to be a guy he would still love her. Being a girl helped, but he loved her for _her_. So it wasn't that he was against Hunter loving Shane. Or "liking" Shane or "having a fondness" for Shane or "hanging out" with Shane or whatever the hell they were calling it this week. Blake was cool with it. Hunter deserved to be happy; he had a lot of crap thrown at him in his life. It was justified; Blake had encouraged it but just…

Thinking something, theorizing something and seeing it in action were completely different things. Blake knew that eventually he would lose Hunter. Not…not completely, not like his brother would evaporate into thin air or slip away into the infinite cosmos of existence, just that…they couldn't be 'Blake and Hunter' forever. It wouldn't be _just_ them. Eventually (and it had already started) they would find someone. Someone important, someone they wanted to share their life with. It was only natural right?

Blake had found Tori. And what had Hunter done when it became obvious that Blake's interest was more than just a passing fad? He supported him, encouraged him in his way, he hadn't complained. He was willing to share Blake with Tori because he knew that was what Blake wanted.

And then there was this… this inkling of a _thing_ that Hunter's not even completely aware of coming to light and Blake knew what it meant. It meant that the 'eventually' he had been expecting was soon approaching, that he…that freaked him out. That the…sanctity, the solidarity that was 'Blake and Hunter' was going to have to be shared. And Blake _knew_ he shouldn't be upset, that he should be happy and supportive and care and should give Hunter a wake up call and he _tried_ to do that but then the…he just…he got scared.

But Hunter hadn't. He was stronger than Blake was.

The navy ranger never voiced these concerns, but it was an undeniable fact. He wasn't nothing, he wasn't weak by any means, but Hunter was always better. It was unarguable. Hunter was older, somehow those few extra months culminating into years of knowledge that Blake had to play catch-up on. Hunter accepted that things were going to be different one day. That things were changing. It was natural, but that didn't mean…

Blake was stupid. He made a mistake, he shouldn't have gotten mad. Hunter needed him; he needed _someone_ because he sure as hell wasn't doing well on his own.

The navy ranger sighed, rubbing the side of his head.

It seemed like their whole lives had been a mess that they had to clean up, yet as detached from normal problems as they were they always managed to find _something_. It was always…there was always something there to fight. People, concepts, money, survival, the weather, always _something_.

They fought through it together, and Blake would be damned if he abandoned his brother now because _he_ felt like being an idiot.

The calming presence beside him said nothing, knew it was unnecessary, and for what felt like the millionth time Blake thanked whatever it was out there that helped him find Tori. It should feel stranger, being this well _known_ by someone else, for her to know his needs with such easy familiarity that he never had to voice. She just _knew_. He should be concerned, but he wasn't. He loved it. And as mildly disturbing that had been for Blake, that had to be like…ridiculously daunting for Hunter. To let someone in.

…now _that_ idea had merit.

Maybe Blake wasn't as big an idiot as thought he was.

He stood up from his perch by the cliffs, Tori following his example with a knowing smile on her face, recognizing that he finally had a game plan in mind. Things weren't better, but they would get there. One step at a time.

First step, get back to Ninja Ops.

Odds were that Hunter had already left, unless one of the others managed to calm him down. Considering that 'one of the others' included Shane that was highly doubtful. Still, it was Blake's best lead. He should probably find out what happened after he had left. After that, reevaluate. He needed to see if Hunter needed time to calm down or if he should just barrage him _now_. Get the worst of it over so that things could get better.

Shane would thank him in the…

…wait.

Hell, he hadn't thought of that.

Blake had no idea how Shane felt about everything. The leader liked everyone, valued their friendships and maintained them with enough attention and affection that Blake frankly found a little disturbing. It was weird…and not in the Dustin weird way but in the…it was just odd. Whatever, unimportant. The fact was that to this point Shane appeared completely unprepared/unwilling/uninterested in romantic endeavors. Hunter knew more than he did but…

One thing at a time. They'd cross that bridge when they got to it.

…but if Shane hurt Hunter in _any_ way the red ranger would find himself in considerable lack of _legs_.

Fact.

Plots of hypothetical payback hatching in his mind, Blake set back off for Ninja Ops, his loving and dutiful shadow following a few steps behind him.

As ever, one step at a time.

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An unsettled silence fell over Shane and Cam as the crimson and yellow rangers made their escape, retreating to God knows where. Cyber Cam happily informed them that they had exited Ninja Ops and as much as Shane wanted to he restrained the urge to ask Cam to track them. Trust, and space, that's what they needed right now. It's what everyone needed. He could see Cam visibly arguing with himself. Ethics over trust. The tech wanted to know too. Shane gave him a disapproving frown that earned him an irritated glare.

He seemed to be getting a lot of those today.

Cam sighed and motioned for him out of the room. Probably back to the kitchen were the remnants of half-finished pies and a by-now-charred apple…_thing _(he couldn't in good conscious call it a dessert anymore) that neither one of them really cared about. His and the tech's relationship had…improved since the rarely talked about Cyber Cam incident. It wasn't what it had been, but the frigid avoidance was gone. Awkward, strained conversations had settled into a more casual atmosphere. They weren't stuck in 'strictly professional'/ 'faking it for Dustin' mode they had settled into. It seemed that his presence was once more welcomed by Cam, and even though it wasn't _exactly_ the same (it would probably be awkward for everyone if he spent his nights snugglin' up to Dustin's boyfriend) Shane was grateful to have his friend back, in however a limited capacity.

The pie (blob, messy disgrace-thing) was burned, charred beyond repair, and Cam quickly dumped its sizzling and oozing black remains into the sink while Shane took care of the smoke, blowing it into an outtake vent to be released into the night. Lucky the smoke alarm didn't go off. The heat and smell would remain for awhile, but at least he took care of one problem.

There would be no more pie making tonight. He and Cam silently agreed to that as they began putting everything away, quiet peace disguising heavy thoughts. He didn't know how Cam was taking it, didn't know if he cared, but Shane wasn't…he felt unsteady. He didn't like having Hunter mad at him. Granted, he didn't like having anyone mad at him, and he knew that there probably wasn't another way to express his concerns to Hunter before that had led the crimson ranger to…_this_, but he still didn't…

If he had just picked up on what was going on before, if he had just treated him nice _before_ this wouldn't be happening…

Or maybe it would have. Maybe it would have just been something else. Perhaps this was meant to happen, that something was supposed to create this rift. That they were destined to fight, and reconcile, and grow. Maybe it would even be for the better.

…it didn't feel that way, but you know…_maybe_.

Hunter just needed time, needed some space to get his head straight. Needed the company of someone who wouldn't demand anything of him and…Dustin could do that. Shane didn't feel bitter about it; it was just the way it was. To be efficient you needed people doing what they were best at. Dustin simply fulfilled something for Hunter that Shane couldn't do right now. Maybe ever.

It didn't matter; there was nothing to think about.

…was it so wrong to want to fix things now? Impatient, yes but…Shane didn't like letting it fester. Giving Hunter time to think…would he get angry? Would he decide that Shane wasn't worth his time anymore?

Stupid, he was making this about himself. Hunter had fought with Blake, not him. He had blown up at _Blake_, not him.

Well…he had, but not first and…

Who the hell was he kidding; they both knew it was his fault. Shane had stirred up the bad feelings, Hunter was just displacing them. The red ranger wondered how angry Blake would be whenever he figured that one out. If he did.

…he would.

The Thunder's communicated.

…the events of this evening disregarded.

He needed to get his mind off it.

"So…" he started, trying to determine the best way to dispose of the pie-that-could-not-be-named, "I have a stupid face."

There were a few quiet moments from Cam's direction, only disturbed as the tech stacked the appropriate ingredients back into the pantry, and Shane almost thought the green ranger was going to ignore his small attempt at conversation until he heard a quiet huff.

"It's not the worst I've seen."

More steam rose as Shane doused the ruined pastry demon with water, and he paused mid-wave when he fully processed the tech's reply. It wasn't…it was _almost_ playful. Not biting, or sarcastic (or not _too _sarcastic)…it was just Cam. So…Shane's epic failure with Hunter this evening was somehow counterbalanced with Cam agreeing to play nice with him.

…Shane didn't understand it, but he wasn't going to question it.

His good fortune continued when Cam decided to keep talking. "He'll cool down eventually. Whatever their fight was, I doubt it was serious." Shane stared incredulously in the tech's direction, but Cam had been prepared for this response and held up a hand, beckoning the red ranger to hear him out. "They were bound to fight _sometime_. Right now it appears that Hunter is angrier at _you_ than at Blake." His head titled to the side, visually dissecting Shane as though he could find the answer if he just looked hard enough. "Now why is that?"

It was...curiosity, Shane decided, that never ending thirst for knowledge, not gossip, that drove Cam to ask. He wanted to be aware, wanted to be informed, needed…there wasn't an emotional involvement. At least Shane didn't think so. Cam and Hunter were never on the best of terms but this time…Cam looked like he legitimately wanted to know, not to use it against Shane or Hunter, just to…

Great, now he was going to start over thinking _everything._

Just wonderful.

Shane could tell the story again, but he wanted Cam's insight on what he thought was the core of the problem, and he didn't want to allow for any details to distract so he decided to keep it vague. Vague wouldn't hurt.

He sighed, rubbing the side of his head as he grabbed at the ruined pie tin and chucked the abused creation into the garbage. "From what I can gather, Hunter's not a big fan of people being interested in his feelings. And then addressing those feelings. Out loud. Seriously. Apparently that is a no-no."

The never-to-be apple pie bid it's last, awful smelling gurgle farewell before Shane slammed the lid closed, turning back in time to meet Cam's amused _'oh really' _face that suggested he probably could have told Shane about _that_ particular outcome.

Know it all.

"But that's what friends _do_," he exclaimed, attempting to defend himself, and Cam was nice enough to give him a small pitying look before returning to wiping down the counters, flour and baking soda caked to the blue laminate.

"I think," Cam began after a few minutes of work where Shane totally didn't pout at him, "that there's more to it than that." Shane leaned forward, eager to learn the treasures Cam was hiding, begging the tech with his eyes to share. He was unsuccessful, as Cam never looked up, but eventually the green ranger began speaking anyway, despite his efforts.

"I think that he isn't used to-"

"Alright, let's focus, what happened?"

Shane nearly did a double take as Blake reentered the kitchen, smiling Tori in tow, and while he was glad the navy ranger seemed to have recovered from his fight with Hunter if he had just moped for like a _few_ more seconds Shane would have been gifted with Cam knowledge and now…

Face set, reevaluating the situation.

Cam wasn't sharing anything _now_.

Damn.

Shane discovered that Blake's question was directed at him a few seconds later, when the thunder ranger continued to stare him down impatiently, and Shane had to shake off his disappointment and remember what the question _was_.

What happened? Right.

The first word that popped out of his mouth was, "When?"

Which…wasn't well received, but in his defense Blake had been pretty vague. Also, on a less important note, he was not Shane's favorite right now.

The impatient stare-down evolved into an impatient glare. "After I left."

Oh…good, that was actually a lot easier to answer. Shane was afraid that Blake was going to ask what he did to make Hunter angry.

Cam, being once more on team Shane, answered for him. "There was some yelling at Shane, and then he left with Dustin." On Blake's questioning look Cam added, "Willingly, for both of them."

Blake nodded and processed this, clearly prepared to make amends for whatever he and Hunter had been fighting about.

"Great," he replied distractedly, still thinking, "where'd they go?"

This was directed at Cam, and Shane was more than willing to _not_ be the focus of Blake's attention.

Cam shrugged, not entirely sure, but gave his best estimate. "Probably Dustin's house."

"Good," Blake mumbled, and with that the room was suddenly down one less blue ranger, Tori staying behind and watching the entrance of the kitchen with a fond smile.

So…would they be good now?

"Should we go?" he asked, unable to stop himself, and the other two rangers shook their heads.

"Give them space," Cam murmured, returning back to his counters.

Tori gave him a sympathetic look and squeezed his shoulder, "They can fix this one."

And they could, _this_ one, but the big problem, the main problem was still for Shane and Hunter to address. They'd get to it eventually, but for now…for now he had to wait.

As much as that killed him.

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So…this was nice.

Granted, it was also weird, and different, but Hunter supposed he could finally understand why Shane was so clingy to the snuggle-you-better way of thinking without being overly vocal about it because Hunter could admit it was just the _tiniest _bit comforting to have someone just…nearby that didn't want anything from you but for you feel better. But not in an overly-emotionally involved way, but in a _'why yes it __**is**__ nice to be physically embraced sometimes'_…way.

Yes, there was nothing to over-think about here.

On a less prominent note, Hunter had lost a smidgeon of respect he had for the other rangers once he was privileged his first viewing of Dustin's room, because _seriously_ how could they be surprised he was gay? Hunter didn't support stereotypes but _come on_, there were neon signs that communicated more subtly than Dustin. Rainbow assortments of pillows, smiley face shower curtain, the _scarf._ Had they _seen_ the scarf? It was awful. Awful and wonderfully glorious at the same time. Hunter wanted to frame this scarf and treasure it for years to come, string it up above Blake's air mattress so he could have nightmares of rainbows chasing him down and threatening makovers. The _scarf…_Hunter couldn't even…and Shane had _bought_ it for the mechanic. He _bought_ it. And then he had the audacity to be _surprised_ that Dustin was gay. Seriously?

You know what, Hunter regretted nothing, Shane _was_ stupid.

…except now it wasn't as maliciously intended as before, and despite his attempts to stay angry at the stupid, _stupid_…he couldn't even think it anymore and stay angry, it was just…so…

Cute. Could he use the word cute? Not in the flowers and puppies way, but in the…Shane, the-meant-well, lovable, dimwitted blockhead-esque kind of cute that was just...

_Damn_.

He couldn't even stay mad at him. And Hunter was usually the master of that.

Shane was so stupid. It shouldn't be endearing but it was. Out of the goodness of his heart he had bought Dustin the world's most hideous scarf and thought nothing of it, because Shane didn't judge, he didn't care, he was just…stupid. In Hunter's universe that word was gradually developing a fonder meaning that it was never supposed to have. He couldn't even stay bitter anymore, it was just sad. He was a pitiful excuse for a thunder ranger.

Dustin shifted beside him, readjusting the hold he had on the pillow clasped against his chest (green, as though it could be any other color) and snuggled closer against Hunter's side, keeping his eyes glued to the television screen.

See, _this_ was why Dustin could not be hated. Hunter had a blow out with his brother and what did the yellow ranger do? Dragged Hunter home, baked him cookies, and then ninja'd him into cuddling on the yellow ranger's bed, mindless drivel playing out on the tv. He wasn't actually sure if Dustin was even watching it, the curly-haired teen was more than willing to jump into conversation with him whenever Hunter prompted, but he never pushed him, like _ever_. No addressing what had led them here, just…chilling. Relaxing, no worry, just…the finer things in life.

Dustin was awesome.

And if Cam ever hurt him _ever_ Hunter was going to rip off his arms.

Slowly.

Unfortunately brooding wasn't a pastime that was easily escaped, it was unavoidable at this point, but it was still nice to have company. And maybe…if he was feeling particularly…_share-y_, he could bounce some ideas off of Dustin.

But that was a big maybe.

Still, not the important issue right now. Fact was that he had already beaten-out and yelled-out and glared-out most of his anger, all that…unnecessary emotional stuff and he could finally (whether he liked it or not) look at things logically, without the hindrance of his natural protective tendencies. Denying things was worse; he needed to be aware of the facts.

So…Blake thought he had the hots for Shane.

And…Hunter was beginning to think that he _might_ just be on to something there.

It's at this point where he realized that the 'playing it cool' game of interacting with people was _not_ the most effective way at keeping them at a distance. In fact, he's pretty sure that it only served to make it more of a shock whenever he finally figured out…what he did, and then there was yelling and punching and yada, yada, yada.

So he failed a bit at playing it cool, because he hadn't really. But _how_ he got to this point wasn't really that important.

_Review the facts._

He enjoyed Shane's company.

Fact.

He would actively seek out Shane's company in preference to being alone.

Fact.

He found Shane stupidly endearing, and so far every step the red ranger had taken to make their relationship…uh…more…_intimate_ had only increased this feeling.

…which he supposed was kind of the point, but…whatever.

Fact.

Shane had a smokin' body.

Fact.

Hunter supposed that his face wasn't too bad either.

What? He was allowed to look.

Oh…yeah, fact.

Shane proclaiming his epic love of all things Hunter had been initially disturbing in its intensity but the crimson ranger kind've, maybe, thought about it sometimes in…positive ways.

Sad, but a fact.

Shane being stupid made him want to bludgeon lampshades with a spork.

Fact.

On a similar note, but completely different because it had to do with Shane, every time the red ranger _continued_ to be stupid even _after_ Hunter had gifted him with mind-blowing advice that should have rocked his little world made the thunder ranger want to strangle him with his stupid skater shoelaces.

Fact.

…he may have attempted to do this once.

Tori had stopped him.

Also, one of the reasons he wasn't a big fan of Cam (aside from the battle-of-doom and the lying and deceiving thing) was because Hunter may have…sorta…_not_ liked how much Shane cared about the tech and no, Hunter was _not_ jealous because he was too awesome to be jealous, but that doesn't change the fact that Shane should find him _way_ more awesome because in a coolness contest with Cam, Hunter's first place pedestal would extend into the stratosphere, _that's_ how much better he was.

…uh…fact.

Right…got a little sidetracked there.

And…well…

Shane made him feel like…_this._ Made him feel _at all_. Made him angrier and happier than other people should be able to, made Hunter think about him because he was simply…himself. He could change Hunter. He _had_ changed Hunter.

Hunter liked him.

A lot.

And just…_maybe_ there was a chance that he sort of…kind of…_maybe_ had the hots for Shane.

If by maybe, he meant _definitely_.

…

…he was so screwed.

Why'd he have to pick the blockhead? _Why_? Why couldn't _he_ have gotten the girl? He was studly. He liked girls.

…

…_yeah_…

Shane was stupid.

Fact.

Just in case anyone got confused.

Okay, entertaining sidetracks aside, that was everything. Now it was up to Hunter to decide what to do about it.

It seemed pretty clear.

Now Hunter was going to own up to this attraction and stop running around and acting like a moron. He was too badass to be acting this stupid, just because he liked someone didn't mean he still couldn't approach this in his same composed and sarcastic manner that he usually tackled all other aspects of his life. He was Hunter. Shane _liked_ Hunter, at least enough to think about him and want to bond with him. The crimson ranger knew at this point there was probably no chance in hell Shane even had the a smidgeon of feelings Hunter had for him, or that he would even consider going after another guy, or that…

No. Nope, he was not going to mope.

Hunter was going to do exactly what he had been doing before, except better. He couldn't obviously flirt with Shane because the red ranger would probably freak out and hide behind his parent's curtains or shut himself away in doofus land if he figured it out, so the blond was just going to have to play it cool. Do some subliminal flirting. Engage in stealth attraction. Master ninja wooing.

…he could probably handle that.

And even if Shane never really did come around, at least Hunter could entertain himself by seeing how far he could go before the red ranger finally caught on to his hijinks.

As depressing as it was, Hunter could actually live off of that.

It wasn't knocking so much as it was quiet scraping that came from the direction of Dustin's window, and both he and Hunter looked up in time to see Blake ducking into the bedroom. He paused after shutting it, studying the room quickly before making his was over to the bed, hovering just at the foot of it.

Hunter didn't bother to move. Dustin didn't either.

…that was fast. So it looked like Blake wasn't taking it as much to heart as Hunter had feared he would. They had both been stupid and thankfully, Blake was willing to accept that and move on.

The ridiculous amounts of relief he felt at that prospect was manly and understandable.

He quirked his head to the side, hair brushing against at least three different pillows. "So…I think you might be on to something."

When the look he received in return was appropriately of the _'no shit'_ persuasion, Hunter knew that his apology had been accepted.

And then the sarcasm faded a little into the guilty look Blake dawned whenever he knew he messed up good, and his younger brother shuffled his feet.

"You have a plan?" Blake asked, delivering his awkward form of apology, and Hunter smiled because they really were cool.

"Yeah," Hunter replied, stretching lazily, "I have a few ideas."

Another moment of silence, another look of relief, and Blake sighed, evident tension leaving his shoulders.

Dustin, quirked his head, somehow picking up on all the words they didn't say. "All good?"

Hunter nodded his head and Blake replied for him, holding his brother's gaze steady. "Yeah, we're good." He paused again, staring at the jumble of pillows around them for a few seconds before shrugging and hopping onto the bed, moving to occupy the space on Hunter's other side. As he settled in Dustin offered him the plate of cookies, and both of the thunder rangers gratefully partook of them.

Super. Favorite. There were no questions, no _"that's it?"_ that Hunter had been expecting, just…acceptance.

And cookies.

They settled into a few more moments of content silence, none of them particularly bothered with moving, or worries, or thinking (white flag, Hunter was done for the day) when Blake interrupted his contentment, disbelieving voice hiding an almost fearful tone.

"What the hell is _that_?"

Hunter smiled and took another bite out of his cookie.

"_That,_ is The Scarf."

_And you will behold its wonder and glory and weep. _

Because really, what else could you do?

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Endnotes:

I think I've got it right this time. For reals you guys. Just a _hint_ of blissful ignorance to keep things entertaining before Hunter gets his acceptance on.

See, see, I learn stuff!

…also, I don't think Hunter would be able to tolerate ignoring blaring facts for long. I'm sure he'd _want_ to, but it's just not in him.

Also, also…again, Valkyrie brought up a pretty good point that I wanted to address up here in the reg'ler endnotes.

I was sort of on the fence about writing Blake's section. See, I wanted to so we could get a closer view of the Thunder's relationship but I ultimately nixed the idea for the sake of pacing. But then some very good points were made and Blake's section was revitalized. So no, Blake's not against Hunter with guys, it's more…the way I see it, Hunter probably helped to raise Blake. He led by example. So whenever Blake see's someone getting 'comfy' with Hunter, his reactions isn't _"ew, two guys",_ it's _"ew, someone's making moves on my role-model/parent-esque figure"_ sort of thing.

So _that's _Blake's deal. He's not disgusted…or, super disgusted, it was really more for comedy's sake. Because I find Blake's discomfort wildly hysterical.

I apology for murdering that joke.

Now, moving on…

Thanks to everyone to everyone who reviewed chapter 43! Can you believe we've gotten so far? It's kind've ridiculous. RAWR, sarcastic Hunter makes his triumphant return! I can only hope he is as wonderful to read as he was to write…never thought I'd end up saying that. Also, _cookies!_ Hi Rogue, no food fight now, but I'll definitely store that idea away for future usage. It holds much promise. And…yes, mucho repression equals mucho explosion, it's only fitting, I think. It was funny, when Muse was beta-ing this her last comment was "I love Dustin", so really, we're all in agreeance that he can pretty much fix everything. It's kind've what he does. Segue to Valkyrie! As it so happens, right after I posted chapter 43 I was thinking about how Hunter was treading just a little _too_ close to Cam's awful-angst-fest-of-_angst_, which while fun in small doses would not be acceptable to continue, so I vowed to avoid that kind of thing. And then I got your review and it kind of made my life. No awkward, I heart your face too. Even if I don't know what it looks like.

That's all for now.

**Edit:** Holy Shiznit I didn't realize that this story broke 100 reviews. I can't even properly put in to words...you guys are wonderful, wonderful human beings who give me far more credit and love than I probably deserve. Thank you _so_ much for reading this story. It wouldn't have gotten this far without your support, and it sure as _hell_ wouldn't have gotten better without your completely justified ass-kickings. Your feedback is awesome. _You_ guys are awesome.

In the words of Abby Scuito, "I am hugging you all in my mind."

Until next time.


	45. The Rainbow Connection

Chapter 45

The Rainbow Connection

I don't own the Muppet movie.

I know, I know, it's not a musical. I just like the song.

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They were doomed.

They had to be, there was no alternative for Hunter to think as conceivably possible, they were simply doomed. They were stamped, labeled, wrapped up in a fancy ribbon and set atop the world's viewing shelf as _"those guys who were doomed"_.

…but he supposed it could be worse. They weren't doomed to destruction or anything. Not doomed to die or doomed to fail. They were just…doomed to inevitably end up fighting whatever fancies flew into Dustin's mind at any given moment. If they were lucky it would only be the thoughts he shared aloud but at this point…

Who knew, maybe the evil boxing kangaroo from space had been inescapable.

But the crimson ranger supposed that really wasn't the point.

Somewhere off to his side a large chunk of building smashed into the ground, excess debris following it as though Christmas for decimated building materials had come early. Out of the corner of his eye he saw a streak of yellow and darted after it, deciding that his lone ranger tactic was ultimately ineffective against the flying, smashing, fire-breathing dragon from angry-angry space.

…Yes, they were fighting a dragon.

And while it was remarkably unreasonable to put a certain curly-haired mechanic to blame because of one long ago, off-hand comment, it sure as hell made all the ducking and pulling stupid floundering civilians who had yet to discover that going _towards_ the giant monstrosity that was taking out their apartment building was _not_ a good idea a little easier to deal with. Hey, if their bestest-pal Snuggles was stuck inside they probably should have invested in a better living space considering the fact that they lived in a city that was often plagued by giant monster attacks. Seriously, this was not new material. And on top of _that_ little situation there also the rather frustrating _challenge_ of the rangers having their long range radio frequencies knocked out or jammed or whatever, and now he couldn't even talk to the rest of the team unless he was like, five feet from them, and on top of _that_, whatever was scrambling the radio somehow affected Cam-squared's ability to access the Zords so they were pretty much stuck fighting a _hugantic,_ mongoloid demon from hell that was roughly the size of two skyscrapers with what amounted to slightly inconveniencing toothpicks and the power of _dreams_.

They would come up with something, probably….hopefully, but for now they would just have to play damage control while Cyber Cam worked on getting their Zords and they worked on _not_ dying.

He hadn't seen Blake since they had parted ways ten minutes ago, too many civilians, not enough them, but he knew Tori would have his brother's back and Shane…

Well, hopefully that dumbass wouldn't do anything too stupid and get himself seriously injured, because Hunter couldn't be pissed at a guy who was moping around in a body cast.

He could try, but even _he_ had limits.

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Dustin had been joking about the dragon.

…Okay, so maybe he hadn't, because they were super heroes and ninjas and it hadn't seemed unreasonable to want to fight a dragon because wasn't that the ultimate test of courage, or something? Like, you beat a dragon and you get infinite bragging rights. They could even fail at saving the world and it would probably be cool because hey, beat a dragon. What? You didn't hear that? _We beat a dragon! YOU MISSED IT BUT IT WAS AWESOME!_

And then they could come up with intricate we-killed-a-dragon high fives and t-shirts and they could sit back every Thanksgiving and reminisce about that time they totally smoked a dragon.

It would make them rock stars of Power Rangers.

…except that he never actually meant for it to happen. And this…this definitely was _not_ the…what had Cam called it again? The…oh, "_romanticized_ _notion"_ he had dreamed up.

Because in his head the dragon didn't attack them in the city, and it didn't enjoy playing whack-a-ninja by throwing miscellaneous sports utility vehicles at them, and while it _did_ breathe fire it was more for dramatic effect and it _didn't_ actually spread to buildings. But real-dragon didn't like sharing with dream-dragon because real-dragon was doing _all_ those things and now Tori and Shane had to leap from fire to fire to put them out and he hadn't seen Blake or Cam in at least five minutes and Hunter…

Was hopping down beside him, tucking out of real-dragons sight while they stealthily looked for any stragglers they might have missed. It would have been a lot easier to check if Cyber Cam was still in contact, but they would have to do with their own eyes, but it looked pretty clear.

Guess that just left the dragon.

He was not a big fan of the dragon.

He shared this thought.

Hunter overdramatically (Dustin could think that now, they were best friends…sort of, Dustin didn't really do "best", he just handed out ties) rolled his head to look in Dustin's direction, the extra energy exerted (mad alliteration, yo) for such a simple action being enough of a retort for the yellow ranger. Its translation was something along the lines of, _"Oh really, you hate the gigantic, fire-breathing death machine too? I almost suspected it was just me, but now that you have shared I can go through the rest of life feeling all warm and fuzzy on the inside."_

This was all sarcastic, of course.

It also meant,_ "You are stupid, and I kind of blame this all on you."_

But only in the kindest, most loving way of course.

Dustin ducked his head, brushing some stray debris off of his Lion Hammer to avoid Hunter's eyes.

"I guess I deserved that."

He should have kept his words to himself.

There was a sigh, and Hunter patted the side of his arm, pulling the yellow ranger's attention back up in time to see a much more casual, ever-so-slight head tilt to the left.

This action said, _"Don't mind me, I'm just a grumpy McGrummper-pants because people are getting hurt and I can't save them all, and I haven't seen my brother in over ten minutes and while I shouldn't be worried, I am, and this is the closest thing I can give to an apology because my insides are wound so tightly I'm about to herniate, and I'm not really mad at you, but you're a really easy target."_

Now the mechanic wasn't book smart, but after dealing with Cam for so long he was kind of a master of non-verbal communication. His signals were simpler, but usually just as effective. He gave Hunter two thumbs-up and the crimson ranger nodded, glad they were understood.

A good thing, because they had friends that needed help, somewhere out there.

Dustin wasn't worried about Cam. It wasn't an overestimation, or an unfair judgment or assumption based on the fact he was a super genius. Dustin just knew that any guy who could gradually help him overcome his fear of water, invent a computer system to run all of Ninja Ops, hold the team together with his mad logic and still have time to be like…awesome would probably be okay.

And Dustin was _so_ not biased about that.

Not at all.

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Blake had saved a total of six dogs, three cats, six hamsters, three gerbils, four guinea pigs, and one chinchilla on this very fine afternoon and was about three goldfishes short of being the ultimate animal wrangler. Slight downgrade from _"Earth's Savior"_ but whatcha gonna do? He would have attempted take a more offensive approach in tackling their dragon problem but after his Tsunami Cycle had gotten blasted fifty yards to next Sunday it became pretty obvious that he needed to focus on doing something a little more manageable. If Hunter ever found out he would never hear the end of it, which was why he supposed the unchanging static blasting in his helmet was a blessing in disguise.

He didn't worry about being parted from his brother, at least no more than usual. Their team was a family now, there would always be someone to watch his older brother's back. Whether he liked it or not.

Blake paused mid-evacuation of a fluffy, small dog just as the dragon let out another burst of flames, this time aiming for the already empty apartment building. A small favor, but the navy ranger would need to stay low until the dragon was landing. If it saw him while it was still in the air he would become its new favorite barbeque experiment. While _he_ would probably be fine, ole' Snuggles here was a different story. Best to stay on the safe side, out of sight.

Across the square he saw Tori and Shane follow a similar strategy, continuing their efforts to minimize the fire damage while disappearing from view.

Damn she was pretty…and amazing and talented and pretty much any other good complimenting adjective in the book. He needed to ask her out some time. Probably soon. Preferably before they were all charred, smoking meat sacks.

…not the most pleasant of mental images.

There was no warning before the empty space beside him was suddenly filled with a very perturbed green ranger, a rough computer/tablet/pda-thing in hand that was almost certainly salvaged from bits and pieces of other technological do-dads. If they survived this there was probably going to be some _very_ unhappy family members who would be missing some rather expensive Christmas presents.

Well, they could just throw that in to the cost of living.

There was a thunderous crash as the dragon finally settled itself down, going at its new target like a cat with a scratching post. Or…something like that. Blake wouldn't really know.

He readjusted is hold on Snuggles and looked at Cam, pure waves of _frustration_ just rolling off of him. "Looking for the jamming thing?"

Instead of answering Cam kept to his work, growling between what was most likely clenched teeth.

"_I will find it_," he vowed.

Blake didn't doubt him, but didn't want to patronize him by saying so. He darted off after a quick nod instead, leaving the master to his business. He did _not_ want to get in the middle of that. He had already seen what happened first hand when someone got in between Cam and something the green ranger wanted. The determination and ferocity was useful, it just…really, really _sucked_ to be on the other side of it.

Hunter knew that from experience.

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Cam knew that in his focus to maximize his efficiency in aiding civilian evacuation while simultaneously tracking the disturbance that Lothor must have planted would undoubtedly lead him to be rather…terse, with the others. He could only juggle so many things at once, and his barely functioning com line with Cyber Cam wasn't doing any favors as far as his disposition was concerned. It was all rather frustrating, but he attempted, he really tried, to contain himself.

It would not help to lash out.

So he was grateful when Blake made his departure, continuing his efforts to preserve as many lives as possible. It was an admirable trait. To be honest Cam hadn't even given thought to any of the animals inhabiting the various buildings in the dragon's war zone (he could practically feel his father's disapproving frown on the back of his neck) and he was undeniably grateful that someone had. He could not bare to think how sorrowful it would have made Dustin, to think of it the wasted lives.

Such a tiny thought in the grand scheme of things, it was just a couple of pets but Dustin…

He appreciated the small things. The simple things.

And for that, Cam loved him.

Now if _only_ he could get a location on that god forsaken signal disrupter he would be…as the mechanic so fondly said, the "King of the World".

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"Are you okay?"

Tori couldn't see the incredulous look she knew Shane was giving her, but she still had to suppress the need to roll her eyes at the thought of it. Really, after half an hour of putting out fires they could most definitely manage multi-tasking.

They ducked behind some pillars, the dragon trailing around the corner of the building it was attacking, and stopped to catch their breath.

Shane tilted his head to the side, disbelief clear in his body language.

"Do you want to talk about the weather too?" He asked, clearly trying to keep things light despite the stress that _had_ to be present. It was impossible for it to be otherwise. He was stressed during all their other battles (and those were _nothing_ compared to this) and even certain training simulations, so now that they had no way to check up on each other, no way to access the zords or to check in with Cyber Cam or even _Sensei_, he _had_ to be wigging out.

But he was the leader, and had to keep himself steady. Hold it all in, like one steady breath.

She skipped past the sarcastic remark, scoping the area out for their next big fire. "They're okay Shane. We're ninjas."

The red ranger didn't immediately reply, seemingly occupied with searching for his own fires but she knew her comment had struck home. She didn't know if it helped, but it was at least _something_.

…it probably didn't help.

She was worried about Blake.

"He's okay."

She snapped her head to the side, surprised that she had been read so easily, and Shane continued. "They're going to be fine."

They trailed off into silence, each occupied with their own thoughts.

They _had_ to be fine.

She couldn't do this without any of them. Even Hunter. And if _she_ felt that way, who knew how Shane felt about it. Not to mention Blake.

Blake was probably willing to hulk out on somebody by this point.

…well, she could sympathize.

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The world had gone to hell in a hand basket. It was a Lothor wonderland. All chaos and fire and destruction and commotion wrapped into one giant ball of awful that wouldn't get out of Shane's stomach. He kept trying to tell himself that they were fine. He _needed_ to tell himself that so he could sound at least a _little_ believable when he told Tori. He had tried to sound good earlier when he still had an eye on Dustin, when Blake was still flitting in and out of view and when Cam was a positive beacon in the distance, stalking and searching for a way out of this mess. He had almost succeeded then, even after he had lost track of Hunter, but now…

It was a lot more difficult now.

And he was getting worse at faking it.

He shouldn't be worried, they had trained just as hard as he had, and they had plenty of common sense to not do anything _too_ stupid, and they would probably-

"Man, people have too many pets."

Extensive training alone kept Shane from leaping in surprise, and he and Tori quickly turned to see the latest addition to their hideout pop in. Blake descended out of nowhere, leaning close to Tori and keeping a steady eye on the rampaging dragon, arm innocently lying across her shoulders.

"I'll say," Shane replied, quipping because it was the only thing that kept his nerves settled, that strangely helped to focus that rush of adrenaline he got, and Tori nodded in agreement.

"Is that what you've been doing? Rescuing stupid dogs?"

The new voice came from behind Shane and there was indescribable amount of _relief_ and _calm_ that washed over him upon hearing it, and he turned in time to see Hunter land just over his shoulder, Dustin leaning against the pillar to his left.

"Dogs aren't stupid," the yellow ranger insisted, and the taller Thunder brother made a vague waving motion and didn't bother looking back.

Dustin gave a thumbs up in response.

Hunter sighed.

…Shane did not understand it.

The other rangers continued the conversation around him while keeping an eye on the dragon, and he just let it buzz around him while he re-centered himself.

"Feel better?"

Again he made no drastic move simply because all of his training, and he slowly turned his head to look at Hunter. The crimson ranger had taken to leaning casually against their column.

"Yeah," he replied, tone nonchalant because he didn't know what else to make it, where he stood with Hunter, and because saying _"I'm glad you're not hurt and thank you for not-hating me"_ sounded a little too needy, even for him.

Further left Cam dropped in beside Dustin and began making his standard mid-battle injuries evaluation before pulling the yellow ranger into a hug, metal box of wires and buttons dangling from one hand. On Shane's other side he could hear Blake finally ask Tori out, which actually seemed like the most logical thing to do in this situation, and Shane finally smiled, knowing that they were going to be alright.

The war wasn't over yet, not by a long shot, and they weren't all perfect but…

But they were getting there.

Slowly.

Gradually.

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Endnotes:

I know this one was lighter and fluffier and not nearly as plot-advancing as its predecessors, _however..._

On this day exactly Any Moment officially turns one year old. That's right, I have been on for one year! How time flies. To celebrate this momentous occasion I wanted to get a chapter out that would kind of celebrate the team, both where it was and where it's going. How the characters have developed and such. And then you know, dragon. Seemed like the obvious thing to do.

Cross my heart next chapter will get back to our regularly scheduled plot, but for now…

Happy birthday guys, thanks for sticking with this story for so long. You are awesome.

Like a thousand hotdogs.

Thank you to all the miraculous people who reviewed last chapter(s). Yin-yang, your reviews made me indescribably happy, but the one that got me author's points made me the most so (if these words make sense). Yay for making slash work! I know slow and gradual is kind of my thing (hold your amazement, I know, I know) but I was still worried about Shane, as he is a fickle beast. Your feedback has made me feel a lot better. Rogue, you've been with me since the beginning, it makes sense that you were lucky 100. Segueing on, I think Shane being Shane is a wonderful argument. Solid, no way around that one. And Tori and Sensei…well, it's a love story, and because of the amount of detail, or at least the volume of thinking that goes into the characters that are involved in the "love" part of the story I tend to forget about Tori and Sensei. It's not intentional, I just get distracted and then excited and…we all know where this goes. Valkyrie, awesome possum, I haven't heard from you in _foreeeeever_. It's weird how you know me so well, because Hunter's sarcasm _does_ tend to sneak up on me. Usually at inopportune moments. It makes life entertaining.

In other news, finals are sneaking up on me, all of which are mandatory and most of which are cumulative, so it might be a couple weeks before I update again. But that's max; it shouldn't be any longer than that.

A little from the title reference:

"_The lovers"_ – Dustin/Cam, Tori/Blake

"_The dreamers"_ – Hunter/Shane

"_and me"_ - insert name

Until next time


	46. Forget About the Boy

Chapter 46

Forget About the Boy

I don't own Thoroughly Modern Millie.

References to 'Good Will Hunter'

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Time was flying by faster than Shane had anticipated. Thanksgiving had quickly moved into December, dragons were ditched in favor of disappearing Kelzaks and a drum-monster-thing, action videos had been made, contests had been won, and the red ranger had finally managed to get to the point were he was _not_ wasting ridiculous amounts of time stressing over what he had dubbed as the "Hunter situation."

As sad as it is, he was actually the most proud of that last one.

Hunter and Blake were fine. Hunter and Cam were…not killing each other. Which was a start. Hunter and Dustin were bestest, best pals (and Shane was _not_ jealous of this) and Hunter and Tori seemed to have developed this secret relationship that revolved around making fun of Blake whenever the opportunity should arise. And also a few times where it didn't. And as far as Shane and Hunter were concerned…

They were fine. Not _quite_ were they used to be, but they weren't total strangers again. They didn't fight. They didn't treat each other badly, they just…existed. Cheerfully.

And it was incredibly frustrating. Because Shane had _finally_ figured it out, eventually, after much consideration on the subject. And it all added up well and good and made _complete_ sense after many hours of wanting to tear his hair out from the sheer frustration of how _little_ sense it made until the simple fact of _"duh, Hunter's not like other people, derp"_ finally dawned on him. Which he'd known but had apparently forgotten because all of Shane's _good_ thinking skills got wasted on things like saving the world and couldn't _possibly_ be applied to such dilemmas as inner-team relations.

But he was getting off target.

Hunter didn't think like a normal person. So when he offered to start hanging out with Shane and started talking to him more and doing general friend-stuff Shane had assumed they were friends. Because that's what the actions implied. And _then_ when they started spending even _more_ time together and Shane started sharing things that actually bothered him, and Hunter actually like…_helped_, Shane thought that they were really _good_ friends. And in Shane's experience, you took care of your good friends. Hell, you took care of your regular friends too, but the really good ones were first in line.

So he had this really good friend who he _hadn't_ been treating really good, so he tried to fix that, because the benefit of having really good friends was that you were honest with each other. There were no walls; there were no messes, just the cold, hard, truth.

And from their previous behavior his actions seemed _perfectly reasonable_, because that's what _normal_ people did.

Except Hunter wasn't normal.

And Shane was kind've stupid.

So then stuff like _this_ happened.

Because _apparently_ Hunter hadn't been on the upkeep with the "really good friends" thing. In fact, he had still been _so_ guarded he probably considered Shane with half-amusement, half-comradely, and just…no, whatever, Shane's wasted too much time thinking about whatever the hell Hunter was thinking about, and the only thing it brought him was a headache, so he's moving on. Hunter hadn't known they were good friends. Which sounded stupid, but bare with the gruff, socially-awkward-thunder ninja. So when Hunter eventually found this out his first natural reaction was to be angry because in his mind Shane had like…deceived him in some way. Betrayed his trust, maybe. And the only possible mental process Shane could think to justify _that_ was _"If you were really my friend you would have __**told**__ me you were my friend"_ but that train of thought led his brain in so many confused circles he would have better spent his time curled up in the fetal position sobbing.

…it's…he's not making very much sense right now. Hunter tended to do that to him.

So basically Hunter had a blow-out/semi-nervous-breakdown-ish _thing_ because he was mad that he hadn't known they were good friends. And he had probably spent a good deal of that torn between enjoying this status and being pissed that he hadn't figured it out sooner, and Shane just wanted him to come back down to normal people land so they could talk it out again.

Except Hunter had decided to go the non-verbal route on this one, which Shane sort of hated most of all, so now he's back at re-good-friending Hunter with the blond's knowledge and approval and waiting until they got back to where they _were_ so they could actually sort of address Hunter's issues without the blond going spazzy-Mc-Punchy Face on him.

Which was _indescribably_ frustrating because Shane hated letting things fester.

…not that he really had to.

At least, there were _some_ things Shane could still help with. Things that didn't require talking.

…to Hunter.

He still needed to talk to other people. Hence his unscheduled visit to Ninja Ops.

Though Cam wasn't all that surprised to see him. It just _happened_ to be a time were Blake, Hunter, and Dustin were occupied at Storm Chargers and Tori was out bonding with her mother and sisters via shopping (which Shane would never understand, but then again, he'd never want to), so if he, as the only ranger with downtime, needed to get something done on the down-low, _now_ would be the most appropriate time to do so.

Cam was even working in the main room with Sensei meditating in his habitat, so the red ranger's timing literally _couldn't_ have been better. Something Cam surmised once he caught the somewhat smug look of satisfaction on Shane's face.

He scowled, because he was required to do that now when Shane came up with sneaky plans, and immediately stopped typing. "What is it?"

No pleasantries, just straight to business.

The skater nodded his head towards Sensei, indicating that his presence was not quite 'fishy business'.

"Sensei," he greeted, bowing his head as the guinea pig gradually opened his eyes. Cam straightened up, looking less tense and more curious now that some of his worries were relieved.

Shane continued after a brief glance in Cam's direction, "I have a concern I would like to address."

It was actually a pretty damn big one, all things considered, and much like the ill-treatment of Hunter it was probably something he should have addressed a while ago.

Still, better late then never.

The red ranger took a knee next to the main table, his master bounding over with a leap before landing in front of him soundlessly, nodding his head to indicate that Shane could continue. Sensing the seriousness of the skater's intentions, Cam took a seat on his right, abandoning his work altogether to focus on Shane's quandary.

His turn to take the floor.

He took a breath to steady himself and launched straight into it. "Blake and Hunter's living conditions-"

"Are gravely insufficient."

Shane blinked, surprised Cam had caught onto him so quickly, and the tech took this time to continue, adapting the conversation as though he and Shane had actually planned it. "With their current income they are struggling to maintain steady living conditions. With balancing school, motocross, and ranger duties they can only work _so_ many hours, and their current employment cannot adequately provide the hourly wages they would require for less parsimonious living, though unfortunately neither of them are qualified to do much else."

Cam halted, probably to breathe, and Shane took the opportunity to cut back in. "Kelly pays them to ride for her team, on top of working at the shop, so their gear and bike maintenance is taken care of, but for everything else…"

Done catching his breath, Cam jumped back in, "They are struggling to make ends meet."

A quiet fell over them as the stared at Sensei's unreadable expression and Shane can feel Cam resisting the urge to fidget. He faced a similar dilemma himself and tried to keep his game face on, refusing to allow any shame to settle into his disposition. Like many other things they should have spoken about this sooner. They should have seen this problem sooner. They should have _done something_. Hunter and Blake weren't floundering _yet_, but with winter coming and the holidays creeping in there was just going to more expenses. Heating, warm clothes, food, and with what Shane had seen…

He was honestly surprised they had made it this far. They must've had some kind of savings stored up before this whole mess started. That couldn't last them forever though, and while Hunter didn't _want_ Shane to be his friend, Shane was still going to treat him like one.

But it was a delicate situation.

Sensei tilted his head to the side slightly, staring between Cam and Shane, and out of the corner of his eye the tech's hand grip the material of his pants tighter.

Cam shame, guilt, whatever. More problems.

One thing at a time though.

Sensei broke the silence, "For how long…"

Cam tensed. "I'm not sure. Between…" he trailed off, because they all know how they had worked Cam like a dog until he could give no more, and Shane reached over a laid a hand against his back. To comfort, maybe. Definitely to support.

He took lead again. "They didn't start letting us come over until just recently, and with everything that was going on…"

Sensei held up a paw, and Shane fell into silence. "I am not disappointed with either of you. Despite the many difficulties thrown your way you have adapted and risen beyond the call of duty." He paused, turning his complete attention to his son, "It is…unfortunate that these details have managed to slip through the cracks." Cam tensed and Shane pressed his hand down a little harder, trying to shake him out of it. "However, let us not worry over what cannot be changed." Cam relaxed underneath his hold and Shane relieved the pressure, though he kept his hand in place. Sensei looked back and forth between them, a demeanor of calm understanding completely familiar on that small, furry face. "What do you propose we do?"

And _that_ was where things got tricky.

Well, he and Cam both _knew_ what needed to be done, so Shane supposed that wasn't the hard part, it was the _how_ that was going to be the biggest issue.

The solution to Blake and Hunter's problem was simple. They had issues paying for a reasonable place to live, so they simply needed to relocate to a place that was rent-free that was actually invested in them staying healthy and happy and completely _un_-stressed out. The thunder rangers needed to be moved into Ninja Ops. Problem solved. They could still work, ride, go to school _and_ save the world and they wouldn't have to worry about things like _food_ and _heating_ and basic survival. Ninja Ops had plenty of space, Dustin could attest to that. There were literally dozens of rooms for the brother's to choose from, none of which had to be located near Cam's. They could have their privacy and still be safe.

The problem then, the glaring, _huge_ issue with all this was simply how to approach them about it. Clearly Shane and Cam couldn't do it. For starters, while the thunder rangers respected Cam and his contributions to the team, it was more likely for Lothor to give up taking over the world for making daisy chains than it was for Hunter and the green ranger to have a civil conversation that _didn't_ end in glaring or smirking or subdued name-calling. They had passive-aggressive aggression mastered like nobodies business. So Cam was out. And seeing as Shane only just _barely_ had a better relationship with both of the brother's than Cam due to the "good-friend misunderstanding", he couldn't really do anything about it either.

He wanted to just move them out while they were working or something, just take all their stuff and tell them _"You're living here now, deal with it"_ but with everything that had happened he would like to make Hunter feel like he had at least a _semblance_ of control of his own life.

…and Blake.

Blake was also important.

So they were sort of in idea-limbo until they could figure something out. Giving the Thunder Rangers both the idea and opportunity to move on their own without them feeling manipulated into it without actually _having_ to manipulate them into it. It was…confusing to say the least.

And then…wait.

Light bulb.

Shane's totally got this one. Who better to tackle a complicated situation then the master un-complicator himself? Who just _happened_ to be beloved by all. Whose advances were rarely turned away and whose concerns were respected and…

Oh yes, Shane had a winning idea.

They could send Dustin. Shane and Cam wouldn't even have to prepare him for it or anything, all they to do was just share their worries and Dustin would take care of it on his own. However he ended up tackling the problem would probably work out better than anything they could have planned anyway.

It was perfect.

Cam stared at him inquisitively and Shane simply grinned wider, gripping the tech's shoulder. He didn't bother with a full explanation, didn't need to utter more than one word. "Dustin."

A slight pause, and just like that they were both grinning like loons.

If anyone could do this, Dustin could.

-:-:-:-:-:-

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Hunter was sort of mad at his door.

Which…wasn't completely reasonable (or as reasonable as being upset at an inanimate object could get), but he had been having one of those very pleasant dreams that _didn't_ completely revolve around Shane when some very loud knocking jerked him out of that blissful rest into the less-than-wonderful real world. The real world where things like headaches and bills and _fruitcake_ (he swore that the redhead free sample lady was stalking him because he could _not_ escape) all existed. He knew confrontation was ultimately unavoidable but he could have indulged in a few more minutes right? That wasn't an outrageous demand. Perfectly reasonable, in the grand scheme of things.

But then there was the knocking and the waking and the blah-de-blah-de-blah-blah-blah.

Why can't he just sleep?

_God_ he was tired. Not extremely though, not enough to not know who was at the door. It was Dustin, had to be Dustin, or a mailman with a death wish (though after what had happened to the last two guys Hunter seriously doubted it). So it was Dustin and by law Hunter couldn't be mad at Dustin so _now_ he's mad at his door and the world and the rabid fruitcake stalker.

She knew what she'd done.

"Hunter! Dude, open up!"

_No, I don't want to._

He just wanted to go back to bed, and if his dreams just _happened_ to include a certain brain-deficient red ranger it would totally be in the triple x, sexual innuendo, eyebrow wiggle, no-clothes kind of way. The kind of way that would only ever happen in his head so no one could judge him (not that he cared) because at the rate he and Shane's blossoming relationship was going he would be lucky if he didn't end up chaste for the rest of his miserable life. He should become a frick'n priest. A _ninja_ priest. There had to be a school for that somewhere, he would totally own that.

And…meanwhile there was more knocking. More _frick'n_ knocking.

Why couldn't he just sleep?

"Dude, I know you're in there! I passed Blake on the way up!"

Traitor.

Stupid, pet-saving traitor.

He could take his heroism and choke on it.

There was a blessed pause in the knocking and Hunter could just picture Dustin hugging the door, all doe-eyed and hopeful as though Hunter was actually considering opening it.

It was funny because he wasn't.

"Come _oooooonnnn_." The crimson ranger could practically _hear_ the pout. Puppy dog eyes were engaged.

Should he? It couldn't be _that_ much effort to get up off the couch, walk over to the door, unlock the door, open the-

On second thought, yes, yes it was.

_Sorry Dustin, I am not leaving this couch._

And that was final.

There was a distinct silence where Dustin's hopes and dreams crumbled down into a mish-mashed pile of failure. Hunter tried not to feel bad about it.

Really, he did.

And _then_ he tried to go back to sleep.

He was practical like that.

"I brought cookies."

…

…

…

…_damnit_.

Why did his chocolate chips have to be so delectable? They were the nectar of the gods. Sure, it was a group of unintentionally ill-meaning gods that pushed addictive baked delicacies onto their followers with an unapologetic smile, but gods none the less.

Hunter's stomach growled loudly to let the world know _its_ opinion on the subject. He glared at it on principal before forcing his feet into action, lurching up off of the couch and across the room before he could change his mind.

He wanted some cookies damnit.

Fortunately Dustin knew him well enough by this point and figured that little fact out and upon opening the door Hunter was immediately gifted with a blessed sugary treat being shoved into his mouth. All sarcastic and witty remarks were immediately replaced with appreciative moaning (because they were _that_ good) and Dustin had the door relocked and Hunter already back on the couch before the blond had come down from his taste bud euphoria.

He leaned his head against the couch, savoring the chocolately, gooey mush.

"_Gaaah…_why do you have to date Cam?" He asked, snatching up two more of the baked goods while Dustin decided how to take that.

Hunter sighed and scarfed down another cookie, groaning again. "I would totally treat your cookies better than him."

Dustin paused mid-stroke through the blond's hair (because there was no shame in whoring out one's _"silky locks"_ for Dustin's cookies), "…and me too, right?"

Hunter nodded, quickly swallowing the remainder of his dessert while scoping out his next prey. "Of course."

Because he would, had been inclined to, had…but that was all history so ancient that he had already cemented it up and drowned it in the murky depths of his mind mafia style, never to be seen from, attended to, or heard of again. It was unimportant. What _was_ important was cookies. Which was…not something he ever thought he'd think, especially with life dealing the hand that it had, but he figured if he stayed diligent to his perception of strength he would eventually break from the stress of it all. The past few weeks were enough to demonstrate that.

So he would allow himself to take pleasure in these cookies. At least for the time being.

Besides, he was sure his world was about to be completely turned upside down in the next second anyway. That's usually what happened when he managed to find steady ground for his feet.

_Why, aren't we feeling a little morose this afternoon?_

No. NO. He had cookies damnit; he would _not_ allow his brain to ruin _cookies_. Even his subconscious couldn't be _that_ evil.

…there _was_ another person here. Perhaps he could try engaging _them_.

Couldn't hurt.

"So," he began, opting out of the cookies near the edge of the plate and going for their warmer, center-buried counterparts, "did you come here to indulge in my wonderful personality or is there a dastardly ulterior motive that you need to butter me up for?"

_And, what is option number two?_

Dustin didn't even hesitate. "The second one," he said, sounding unfairly charming for someone who just openly admitted to bribery. Unintentional craftiness was one of Dustin's hidden skills, only accessible in times of great need. And since he brought cookies it was probably going to involve something that could either A) Offend Hunter's pride, B) Scare him with its intimacy _(yes, he got it, he's a baby)_, or C) involved Shane. Hunter would like to think that maybe Dustin just brought cookies for the sake of cookies but they both knew that the mechanic wouldn't have gone full chocolate chip for anything less than what he considered key issues.

Hunter almost hoped it involved Shane. Old Hunter would have denied this and repressed it and refused to acknowledge such stupid whims but new-Hunter only bullshitted people who _weren't_ him so yes, he wanted it to be about Shane. Ever since the regrettable "stupid face" debacle…thing the red ranger had been keeping on the down low. In fact, it was so down low it was almost to an unnecessary degree which Hunter could only assume was the skater's way of overreacting to Hunter's overreaction. It was weird. Shane was being nice without being invasive. He wasn't reaching out to Hunter for anything other then team business, he hadn't dropped by Hunter and Blake's apartment _once_ since Thanksgiving and despite the fact they had defeated a real-life, fire-breathing dragon together they had pretty much gone to being acquaintances. Good acquaintances, but acquaintances nonetheless.

And Hunter would feel a lot more smug if Shane wasn't so ridiculously good at it. He wasn't faking. He wasn't pushing _anything_, at all, whatsoever, onto Hunter. There were no sideways looks, no _"I wish I could talk to you, but I can't"_ eye…glancing…things, and Hunter's beginning to feel like more and more of the most pathetic degree of stalker with the way he's analyzing Shane's…non-engagements.

If he allowed himself to use the word depressing it would be that, but even the idea of humoring the word as a label was in itself, depressing, and now…

See, _this_ was the crap he's had to deal with. Not the fun stuff.

He was becoming startlingly aware of the fact he was in High School. Was this what normal teenagers dealt with?

He did not like it.

But even so…

"Lay it on me," he announced, finishing up one last cookie for strength.

It was surprising the things they could do.

"Okay," Dustin chirped, because that was _his_ way of laying down the law. "I want you to move to Ninja Ops."

Hunter paused; conflicted between addressing the issue or using the sarcastic remark he had waiting eagerly in the wings, begging to be used.

Couldn't he do both?

…sort of?

He pointed accusingly at the brunette, wagging a finger. "You know we don't always do everything you want right?" True, Dustin could get them to do a lot of things, but even his sincerity and constant effervescence had its boundaries. "And you can't guilt me in with cookies."

No matter how good they were.

Dustin nodded slowly, eyes accessing the blond. Probably because Hunter was taking this a lot better than he thought he would. Hell, even Hunter was surprised at how well he was taking this. Maybe he's in shock; or perhaps he thought too highly of Dustin to fully comprehend what the mechanic had actually set out to do here.

_Alright, time to take a moment to process everything._

Let's see…Dustin wanted Blake and Hunter to relocate because even when they worked as many hours as their schedule allowed (and even a few times where it honestly didn't) they could still just _barely_ afford to keep the crappy apartment they managed to con the landlord into giving two minors. _And_…whatever money was left after paying for _that_ they had to spend on utilities, food, and clothing (because you could only rip-off an outfit for ninja battles so many times before it got bitter and decided that it wanted to _stay_ that way) and with winter settling in with no concern for leaving soon, all of these expenses were bound to double. This would leave them with even _more_ nothing, as compared to the earlier nothing that they previously had.

To be blatantly honest they were running on fumes here, and while the rest of the team had respected the Bradley's pride and privacy, they were finally putting their foot down, deciding enough was enough. Realistically, they needed to go somewhere safe and secure were the rent was magically paid with the food and utilities and they could focus on doing things that were slightly more important than convincing Mrs. Jennings downstairs that other teenagers sneaking in through third story windows was the new "hip" thing to do.

…as sad as it was Hunter had already spent all his excess worrying on _we-all-know-who_ so he couldn't really find it in himself to summon the energy to be angry, or frustrated, or…anything really at the team's concern.

Dustin's suggestion made logical sense, and it wasn't like he and Blake would be completely mooches, they would still work.

And then, of course, there was the saving-the-world thing. Definitely in their favor.

Two sentences into this conversation and Hunter had already given up on legitimately fighting it. He would still do some probing though, put up a bit of resistance. Just for appearances sake. Couldn't let them think he was too easy. On the bright side Dustin would probably end up spilling all aspects of the team's plan-of-attack anyway, so it wasn't like Hunter would have to force anything out of him.

If he just waited like, three seconds, the information would come to _him_.

See, he was practical.

To speed the process along he engaged his "questioning eyes" (so dubbed by Blake).

Which…Dustin didn't even bother looking at.

_Tool_.

"The cookies were for your pride," the yellow ranger explained, rearranging his baked delicacies into the beginnings of a cookie fort. "Cam's suggestion."

With the base of the structure established Dustin began working on the second layer, apparently so super focused on his new project that he apparently felt like having a conversation like normal people, with pauses and questions and…effort and stuff.

_Double tool._

Shouldn't he be _trying_ to win Hunter over? It's like he already knew the blond had given up.

Perhaps it was the lack of yelling.

…whatever, it was irrelevant. He had subtle probing to do.

Hunter grabbed a cookie that had strayed to the edge and helpfully plopped it onto the beginnings of the third layer, sneaking in a purposely placed off-hand comment. "And Shane's."

He bet that the red ranger and Cam had this whole thing planned out before they even told Dustin about it. _Finally_, he caught Shane in the act. Sure the skater could act all aloof but when it came to completely walking the walk Hunter had him wrapped around his little finger. There was hope, perhaps.

Dustin paused, confused look on his face, "Nope, just Cam's." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully, leaving a haphazard trail of cookie crumbs. "Sensei's the one who suggested I be direct."

Hunter rolled his eyes, more at himself than at Dustin (why did he think subtlety would magically start working on Dustin _now_?) and evened out one of the corner towers, successfully keeping the cookies from tilting. "What did Shane say?"

Dustin stopped again, more confusion settling in. He stared at Hunter questioningly, as though the blond knew something he didn't. "Nothing, Shane wasn't there."

…

…

…_what?_

"He wasn't there?" Hunter echoed, paused mid-tower completion and feeling just as genuinely confused as Dustin had been. It was like they were speaking two different languages, except they understood each other's words perfectly, the definitions just kept coming up to things they were supposed to.

Dustin pushed his hand away gently and placed the plate down on the coffee table, concern overriding the confusion.

"Just Cam and Sensei," he clarified, scratching the side of his head. "This is a kind've important issue."

_Well, der_.

Hunter got that, but if it was so important…

He leaned back against the couch, trying to come off as relaxed and probably failing drastically. "Shane didn't put you up to this?"

Shane _had_ to have said something about this. This whole scheme practically screamed _Shane_ so loud that Lothor could hear it from his frick'n ship. This was a Shane plan so why the hell wasn't he the one…?

And the world kept turning.

"Nope," Dustin replied, shrugging his shoulders in that honest befuddled way that said he didn't understand why Shane hadn't been there either, hadn't suggested it, and it didn't add up to him, so-

Hunter leaned forward, hands resting on his knees while his mind went back into the fray. "He didn't-"

Dustin interrupted, hand going to the crimson ranger's shoulder. "Dude, what's with-"

"Nothing," Hunter barked softly, cutting Dustin off before he could mention he-who-should-not-be…

Damnit, _damnit!_ Why was he becoming so freaking incapable of thinking of things that _didn't_ involve Shane. Why did every, _little_- It's like he wasn't allowed to breathe unless he spent a good three minutes thinking about Shane's damn placement in his world.

And then now, supposedly, there's this…this was a big deal right? It involved Sensei, and living, and privacy and _boundaries_ and him and Blake and yet, somehow Shane was "supposedly" uninvolved. Or at least for all appearances sake, he was uninvolved.

Hunter used to be the king of apathy, but Shane…

Dustin leaned forward; cautiously placing his hand above Hunter's which had subconsciously began fisting against his knees. "Are you guys fighting again?"

"Nope," Hunter growled, sounding remarkably untruthful, but Dustin backed off, deciding to take his answer for what it was.

Focusing on the bigger picture.

Well, Hunter had a bigger picture too.

The mechanic backed away, but still kept a hand against Hunter's shoulder. "So…about what I-"

"We'll do it," Hunter replied softly, sitting up. Cool, composed.

He had a plan of his own. One that would probably work out horribly, one that could probably be easily trumped by the basic act of communicating, but one that he felt was a lot more appropriate than "logical" responses because hey, feelings had gotten him this far right?

Why not go the distance.

Dustin sat back, surprised at how easily Hunter had given in. "Really?"

_Really_.

Hunter nodded, biting back a smile. "Yeah," he assured, then tilted his head, a new idea slowly coming to him, "…tell Shane I put up a big fight though."

The confusion was back. Oh how adorable Dustin-puzzlement was. "Um…why?"

Because two could play at that game, that's why. If Shane wanted to ignore him, _fine_, but Hunter was going to send him home _weeping_ whenever the red ranger got completely powned by his awesome apathetic skills. He had spent a majority of the first few months working with Shane ignoring him, so how hard could it possibly be to revert?

Sure, it was a horrible idea. Completely spiteful. No means to an end. No way to achieve anything that even remotely resembled a pleasant ending. In fact there was a good chance Hunter had brought this upon himself _anyway_ by freaking out on Shane, but he didn't care. He couldn't…he couldn't accept the fact that Shane would do something like that for him. Because if he did it would be because Shane was such a good guy, and his friend, and that's what Shane did for good friends and team mates and…

And that's not what Hunter wanted.

So instead of…trying for something that was most definitely hopeless he had _this_ stupid plan.

Because if Shane just _kept_ ignoring him…

Then it wasn't supposed to happen. What they had wasn't _supposed_ to get better.

Hunter didn't deserve him.

_Pushing him away before it even started_.

Master, no, _King_ of apathy.

He needed to tap into that now.

A light touch on his shoulder brought Hunter back to the outside world. He rubbed the side of his head, suddenly very, very tired.

"I'm not entirely sure…yet."

He would come up with something.

"…and you guy's aren't-"

"We're not fighting."

They were so _not_-fighting that the emperor of pacifists would be jealous of their interactions. Assuming that pacifists were dedicated to an empiric way of living.

Dustin backed off again, this time deciding to make a strategic retreat from the apartment. "…okay."

_Okay_.

He left the cookies as a parting gift, but Hunter couldn't take any satisfaction from them.

He was too busy destroying the little things he had before they could hurt him. His life revolved around control, it was stupid to think he could manage something like a relationship.

He wasn't equipped for that.

* * *

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* * *

Endnotes:

Ten points to Gryffindor, so declared by my sister.

Apparently I win.

Sorry that the "couple of weeks" expanded into a much longer wait. Christmas preparation required a lot more than I had anticipated it would, and I'm in another show now so most of my evenings are taken up by rehearsal.

Alright, enough with the excuses, let's get on with this.

Apparently Hunter's infected Shane a little bit. The sarcasm is slowly sneaking in there, lying in wait. I think it's kind of cute.

I'm not entirely sure how I feel about Hunter's section. I like it, but I'm not entirely sure if it's too much too fast.

Many repeated thanks to everyone who reviewed last chapter. Valkyrie, Rogue, yin-yang, RAWR, and agd888, you guys are awesome. I can only hope that this chapter didn't disappoint.

Alright, it's late, so I'm going to go ahead and wrap this up now.

Until next time.


	47. Without You

Chapter 47

Without You

I don't own Rent

* * *

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* * *

There was something brewing, something mysterious and weird and completely out of Dustin's league, but there was definitely, uh…_something_ churning up in Hunter's head.

And for the life of him the yellow ranger couldn't figure it out.

He decided not to worry about it too much though, it couldn't be that bad. Minor at most. It was probably just another one of those pride fights that the blond had with Shane every once and a while. They would be mad at each other for a little bit, and then they would beat up a monster together, shake hands, and call it a day.

Worked every time.

And since it was just more of the same there was nothing really to worry about, so Dustin immediately pushed the insanity that was Hunter/Shane relations out of his mind and called Cam to give him an update on the good news. Hunter hadn't even fought him or anything. Either Dustin's cookies were really just _that_ epic, or his skills of persuasion were reaching newer and better heights.

If it was the latter, Cam best be on the lookout.

"_Go for Cam."_

_Yes I will_.

Dustin grinned, picturing the wonderful piece of man-meat waiting for him at Ninja Ops. He was sure there would be rewards for his clean victory.

"Dude, I got a yes."

Because he was awesome

"_Just like that?" _

By the skeptical tone of voice Dustin could tell that clearly _somebody_ was not aware of Dustin's improved powers of persuasion. So much the better for him, now it would be a surprise when he convinced Cam to do that one thing-

"Yeah," he replied cheerfully, mind occupied. He desperately wanted to stick to the train of thought that focused on a certain attractive green ranger and certain to-this-point-forbidden activities, but there was something nagging at the back of his mind, something he was supposed to remember…

"Oh yeah," he whispered, snapping at the revelation, as was required when such revelations were made. "Hunter says to tell Shane that he put up a big fight."

Dustin took comfort in the fact that the crimson ranger was just as lost when it came to the purpose of this as he was. But it was most likely because of pride. That's what they fought about right?

There was a slight pause on the other end of the line. _"But he didn't."_

"Nope."

Another pause.

See, even _Cam_ was confused. Which somehow made Dustin feel _less_ confused.

If that made any sense.

Cam cleared his throat, covering up his hesitation. _"Let me get this straight, Hunter has urged you to tell Shane that he put up a big fight when he in fact acquiesced to our appeal with moderate ease?"_

Dustin thought about this for a second.

"Yeah, that sounds about right."

There was another pause, but Dustin's pretty sure this one was simply from digesting and understanding that their friends could be a special kind of stupid sometimes, rather than actually being confused, which is where Dustin tended to make his home.

It wasn't a pleasant fact, but it happened.

Before Dustin could mourn this longer, Cam cut back in. Brightening up his day.

"_I'm deliberating whether we should enable this behavior."_

What, the lying?

Yeah, Dustin had been on the fence about that one too. But then he thought about it.

He wouldn't lie, he was uneasy with the lack of honesty, especially in regards to his best friend. He liked Hunter a lot, maybe enough to also call him best, but Shane was best _first_ and that deserved a little more consideration. At least, those are the rules he had made himself. It made things easier to think about, in the grand scheme of things.

"Yeah, that bothered me too, but the way I see it, it's a pretty small demand compared to what we're asking him and Blake to do." He paused for a second to allow that brain-sickle to melt in. "Also, if this is just another one of their fights it'll probably blow over in a few days anyway."

There was a thoughtful silence on the other end of the line. Though Dustin guessed since all of Cam's silences were thoughtful, in the world of the green ranger it was just another silence.

The thoughtfulness was inferred.

"…_I suppose you have a point."_

Dustin smiled, pleased that everything was going so well. Hunter and Blake were going to be moved somewhere safe, where they were cared about (a real home), and Dustin didn't have to lie, or beg, or get yelled at to make it happen. Everything was going to be okay.

"Yes, I believe I do."

His point was awesome. Now he just needed to get back to Ninja Ops to make blow Cam's mind with his sexy brain persuasion.

It was a good day.

-:-:-:-:-:-

-:-:-:-:-:-

-:-:-:-:-:-

Cam frowned at his morpher, a moderate amount of anxiety and wariness settling in his stomach. The ease with which Hunter surrendered couldn't help but set Cam on edge. There had to be something greater lurking, a bigger threat occupying Hunter's attention that allowed this sudden and definite change to occur so effortlessly. True, while Hunter claimed to not be an individual entirely driven by emotion the blond had a nasty habit of responding to logical and reasonable responses excessively…and sporadically. Emotionally, would be the word Cam would use for it, though out of respect he avoided using such language. The tech had expected denial at first, and other more negative responses, and after a little more resistance Hunter would inevitably surrender to the most logical course of action. The crimson ranger was a reasonable person when addressed with things that didn't immediately affect his person in what could be considered an "intimate" fashion. And even when it _was_ something more personal, that reasonable person didn't completely disappear. Near the end of his time of rebellion that intelligent counterpart would make his appearance, and the initial, reasonable, logical choice of action would be allowed its victory.

So Hunter's easy surrender did little to calm Cam's nerves on the Thunder Ranger's imminent move to Ninja Ops. In fact, despite Dustin's protests otherwise the tech was almost certain that on top of his concerns for sharing a home with the Bradley brothers there would undoubtedly be some newer, bigger, more unique and outlandish threat to occupy Cam's mind. The only silver lining was that in all probability this new "Hunter problem" was entirely centered around Shane.

…if that was a silver lining at all.

Cam was fond of Shane. He was, aside from Dustin, Cam's best friend. And while the green ranger was not well-practiced in the role of "best friend" he knew that preventing disasters of the social and emotional spectrum from occurring was probably within the job requirements. It was also part of basic human decency.

However…there was the slight chance that the tech was simply over thinking this, as he tended to do with things that concerned his friends. Sure, Hunter was…difficult, to put it kindly, but whatever his motivation…whatever his current preoccupation with Shane…it probably wasn't nearly as bad as Cam envisioned it to be. Dustin was right; it was far more likely that the two reds were simply on the outs again, a few more days and balance would be restored. And meanwhile the team could take advantage of this little tiff and move Hunter and Blake into Ninja Ops with no resistance. Everybody won.

And yet Cam _still_ hesitated before calling Shane to update him on the situation.

It was unavoidable, he supposed. One couldn't completely divert from what was the natural order of things. Paranoia, treading lightly, it was simply in his bones.

He needed to have faith.

"_Go for Shane."_

It was a confident, relaxed tone. The red ranger wasn't on edge, probably assumed from the lack of exploding buildings and kidnapped citizens that this was simply the progress report that it was, as opposed to an actual attack.

Cam got right to the point.

"Dustin got a yes."

As they knew he eventually would, the pause then, on the other end of the line was merely a period of adjustment Cam had felt similarly, surprised it had taken only one visit. While Shane became accustomed to the gravity of the situation Cam recalled the terms that were negotiated for such results, and prepared himself for an action that would probably be inconsequential at the end of the day. Though this knowledge brought him little comfort.

Cam grit his teeth and got on with it, not waiting for Shane's response.

"Though from what I heard he put up a rather impressive fight before reaching this decision."

Though that was _all_ he heard.

There was a quiet scoff on the other end of the line. _"Yeah, that sounds about right."_

And then there was nothing. No distrust, no anger or frustration just...nothing.

It seemed Dustin was right after all. There was nothing to worry about, no warnings that needed to be issued. The lie had been given and for Shane it was…expected. Welcomed, even. Which made Cam wonder if the planted information had been for Hunter's benefit at all, or if it was simply the blond's way of…informing Shane that the natural balance of things hadn't been lost.

It was a puzzle that Cam did not like. There _was_ something to be worried about here, something…he wasn't sure what, _yet_, but he would stay vigilant. Eventually he and Hunter would share the same roof and Cam was going to keep the crimson ranger under observation until he could determine what the other's endgame was.

"Yes…I suppose it does."

Shane was Cam's best friend. He loved him, and he was prepared to worry and protect him from...whatever this was.

It was something…right?

There had to be something.

-:-:-:-:-:-

-:-:-:-:-:-

-:-:-:-:-:-

On move-in day everything went pretty smoothly. There weren't any big hang-ups, mostly, Shane supposed, because the thunder ranger's didn't have very much to move in the first place. Cam had gone ahead and cleared out a suite (which Ninja Ops apparently had, and Shane was beginning to wonder what else the tech was hiding from them) for Blake and Hunter, moving out a few pieces of furniture to make room for the Bradley collection. True what they had was ragged, stained, and bore no overall cohesive design, but it was _theirs_ and somehow the green ranger knew that they should be allowed their little piece of "home".

From what Shane could tell the thunder ranger's appreciated the sentiment, though Blake was the only one to tell the tech so. But it wasn't like any of them were expecting Hunter to say anything anyway. Hell, him _not_ being overly rude towards Cam was his little way of saying thank you. Shane would have hugged him for it if he were allowed anywhere near the grumpy blond.

Well…he'd take what he could get.

And right now that apparently entailed…nothing. A great load of nothing.

Hunter was giving him the master of silent treatments, the coldest of shoulders. He had neither made eye contact, spoken to, or even verbally addressed to the other rangers anything that had to do with Shane. Even when they ended up moving the couch down the stairs together the crimson ranger had somehow managed to pretend he was taking on that particular endeavor all by his lonesome. It wasn't that he was ignoring Shane and letting Shane _know_ that it was happening; it just seemed that Hunter didn't want to acknowledge he existed right now. So he didn't.

The others had sent Shane concerned looks when they first began noticing it, Dustin worried and Cam looking speculative, trying to dissect the causes for such behavior while Tori and Blake stared on with confused looks on their faces. Clearly the younger Bradley hadn't been let in on this behavioral choice.

But Shane simply waved off their concern. It wasn't anything to worry about. Hunter simply needed to get this out of his system before they could go back to what they had. It was the crimson ranger's odd way of saving face. Hunter was a proud guy who needed his space, and Shane was willing to give it to him.

He contemplated, very briefly, pretending that this behavior actually bothered him. That was probably the point of it all, right? To get upset. But he just…he couldn't. Because he honestly wasn't. He saw this for what it was, and more importantly, what it actually _meant_, and couldn't help but…well, be relieved. Because this was the light at the end of the tunnel. This was the one last act of defiance before everything would go back to normal.

So he couldn't be mad.

And maybe _that_ was the mistake he made.

-:-:-:-:-:-

-:-:-:-:-:-

-:-:-:-:-:-

Blake did not like this new change. He did not like this new change _at all_.

While it was pretty obvious that he and his brother weren't the champions of communicating effectively, or even expressing themselves properly (as evident by the three months of cautious flirting before actually asking Tori _out_) he was pretty sure that Hunter's newest plan of attack for winning Shane's affections was probably the most stupid thing to ever come into existence.

A few days would have probably been acceptable. At least, in the world of Shane and Hunter communications where the standards most of society used to perceive things were non-applicable it _could_ have been acceptable. Blake figured that they just had another fight or something, and Shane would allow Hunter the few days he needed to do…whatever it was he was doing, and then they would be fine. Hunter would go back to mooning over Shane in the most concealed, stealthy, macho way and Shane would go back to being the ridiculously best, best-friend and they would go on being completely unaware of the lovey eyes they kept throwing at each other until the damn burst on their sexual tension and they started making out in Storm Chargers.

…which wasn't something he _enjoyed_ thinking about, but seeing as it was inevitable he had began to slowly start integrating these ideas into his normal thought processes.

You know, to be prepared and stuff.

…yeah, looking back on things Blake's totally sure that Hunter's feelings for Shane were reciprocated. That was the only way the skater could be this patient with Hunter's epic amount of stupidity.

But it's not like he could tell his brother that.

…well, he _could_ (and had tried) but it wasn't like he could get Hunter to actually _listen_.

The older Bradley had already decided to do things the hard way.

So when it hit ("it" being _'Hunter's Stupid Plan'_, as Blake had labeled it) the one week mark, the navy ranger had begun to get a little worried. One week was pushing it, even by red ranger standards. One week was over-doing it. One week meant that the younger Bradley brother had to reevaluate the situation to see if he could understand whatever the hell the _older_ Bradley brother was doing. Maybe he and Shane _hadn't_ gotten into a fight. Maybe this was Hunter's very awkward…very horrible way of flirting.

_Ugggh_, that thought killed him a little bit inside, because no relationship was that screwed up. Hunter was not _that_ screwed up to think this actually might work. So that meant Hunter _wasn't_ flirting, because while Hunter was stupid he wasn't like…_stupid_, so it was a fight. But it wasn't an average fight because Hunter was pulling out all the stops for this one, going for the long haul.

Either Shane had done something very, very bad to piss off his brother, or he had done something very, very _right_ and Hunter was expressing his thanks by being the world's biggest jackass.

One more day. Blake would give Hunter one more day to celebrate his emotional ineptness before they had a very blunt heart-to-heart.

This wasn't acceptable.

Whatever _this_ was.

-:-:-:-:-:-

-:-:-:-:-:-

-:-:-:-:-:-

A week was just a week. It was just a unit of time, signifying nothing more than the passage of seven days. And while most weeks were just that, weeks, Shane couldn't help but feel a little on edge because of the…conditions of _this_ particular week.

Hunter was still ignoring him.

Okay, alright, Shane was willing to admit that one week was pushing the bill on over-reactions, even as far Hunter was concerned. It was getting seriously depressing. When Hunter worked the cash register at Storm Chargers Shane would just hang around nearby, catching up on some reading or watching the latest competition footage or just…being there, waiting for whenever the blond felt like acknowledging him again. He wasn't even sure if this was the right thing to do anymore. He couldn't tell what Hunter wanted. Did he _want_ Shane to talk to him? Did he want the red ranger to be the one who broke the silence? Did he want Shane to give up?

But maybe he was worrying for nothing. It had only been a week. It had only been seven days. Not unbearable days. Not particularly difficult days. Just…days.

_Pff_, he was being stupid. He was literally overreacting to _nothing_.

Things would restore themselves soon enough.

Until then he just had to keep waiting.

-:-:-:-:-:-

-:-:-:-:-:-

-:-:-:-:-:-

Okay, Blake's beginning to think that Lothor must have zapped Hunter with another mind beam because the crimson ranger had surpassed ridiculous and taken his new obsession with avoiding Shane to higher levels of absurdity. Things had officially gotten out of hand. Unfortunately there didn't seem to be much any of them could do about it.

Even the act of talking about Shane seemed to be off limits. Even with _him_, Blake, Hunter's brother. The guy who was _also_ adopted and experienced the life-shattering death of his parents. _That_ guy. Yeah, Hunter didn't exactly feel like talking to _him_.

Not about Shane.

It was…insanity, was the only word Blake could think for it. It didn't make any sense, what the hell happened? Shane _had_ to have done something awful. It was the only explanation.

So one day Blake finally managed to corner the skater, just the two of them, and…

And he seemed just as confused as Blake was.

Their conversation had gone a little like this:

"Dude, what'd you do to Hunter?"

And the honest reply, the exasperated, frustrated, agitated, reply just _oozing_ with undertones of hurt and bewilderment and whatever else was in those sappy movies Tori made him watch (no, he did _not_ like them), was just this:

"After apologizing, nothing."

And then like the suppressing depression good-natured guy he was he walked off with slumped shoulders, mourning the loss of contact with a guy that was obviously kind of insane.

…seriously, there had to be love there. Blake just could _not_ think of another way for this to work.

He just wished Hunter could see that.

You know, before he did too much damage.

-:-:-:-:-:-

-:-:-:-:-:-

-:-:-:-:-:-

It needed to be done. He didn't want to do it but it needed to be done.

Like, yesterday.

He contacted the crimson ranger's morpher.

"_Go for Hunter."_

Dustin paused, totally to catch his breath or mentally prepare himself or anything that _wasn't_ being slightly intimidated about what he had to do.

Not at all.

"Hey…uh, Hunter?"

An awesomely powerful start.

You know, comparatively speaking.

…if he was using that word correctly.

He probably wasn't.

But he didn't think that was the point.

"_What, Dustin?"_

The mechanic hesitated at the gruffness of the older Bradley's tone before remembering the note cards he had prepared for occasions such as the urge to chicken out, and picked up where he had left off.

"…did Shane like…kill your imaginary friend or something?"

He figured if he eased Hunter into the conversation he would receive better results. Not that he was very good at doing things slow or…tactfully or…

Well, the imaginary friend thing would probably throw the blond for enough of a loop that he would stay onboard.

Hopefully.

Dustin continued, scratching the side of his head. "Not that it's bad to have imaginary friends or anything. I think they're great."

He used to have a ton of them.

_Used_ to.

"…well, they don't really compare to real friends but like…"

Because after getting the real deal the fake ones lacked a certain pazzaz.

"Cuz, you know, real friends can actually _talk_ to you, and give you hugs and stuff."

Which he was a pretty big fan of.

He thought Hunter had been too.

"You know, like when you're sad."

And alone and just needed someone to be there for you.

Dustin sighed, abandoning the pretty much useless flashcards. He was rambling.

"I like having real friends," he whispered, trying to…you know, make Hunter see what he was doing.

The bad of it.

There was a short silence on the other end of the line before Dustin finally got his reply, though it seemed that what he had been trying to get across was completely missed by the other reason.

"…_is there a point to why you called?"_

The crimson ranger sounded annoyed.

Dustin coughed, tilting his head bashfully.

This should be going better.

"Uh…yeah."

Wasn't it obvious?

Another annoyed pause.

"…_**and**_?"

"It's just…" Dustin scrunched his nose, thinking, "It's hard to keep real friends if you treat them like imaginary ones."

But not, not really, it was different, but still wrong.

He clarified.

"Except instead of like, no one else being able to see them, it's only _you_."

And Shane hadn't done anything wrong to be an imaginary friend.

"It sucks dude."

Shane was a _real_ friend.

And real friends had needs, and concerns, and deserved respect, because that's how you _kept_ real friends. That _why_ you were friends. Because there were nice people who liked you so they treated you nicely.

Did Hunter not like Shane anymore? Was that why Shane was imaginary?

There was dead silence on the other end of the line.

"Dude, are you still there?"

It would suck if Hunter started ignoring _him_ too.

They had just become good friends.

There was a sigh and Dustin smiled.

Victory.

Sort of.

"…_unfortunately."_

He was getting somewhere.

The yellow ranger decided to push his luck.

"…Well, did _he_?"

He wanted to know. Shane _had_ to have done something right? Something happened.

Or was Hunter really that fickle?

"_Did who, **what**?"_

The agitation was back full force, and Dustin couldn't decide if Hunter really had no idea what he was talking about, or if he was like…being vague on purpose.

He didn't…he couldn't…

He gave up; Hunter wasn't going to tell him anything. Not anytime soon. And he wasn't smart enough to figure it out on his own.

Dustin hanged his head, throwing in the towel with a sigh.

"…forget I called."

_Forget like how you forgot Shane was your friend._

He was really good at that.

Hunter remained completely unaffected by the disappointment in his voice, spitting out a hasty, _"whatever"_ before ending the call, leaving Dustin alone with his failure.

He didn't know what to do.

He knew he needed to do _something_, he just… didn't know what to do.

-:-:-:-:-:-

-:-:-:-:-:-

-:-:-:-:-:-

Blake wasn't sure what to do anymore. His mind was thoroughly boggled. _Boggled_. Hunter wouldn't talk about it, and clearly _Shane_ hadn't done anything, and Tori kept on giving him these looks like it was all _his_ fault and he didn't know how this was going to end but he was pretty sure that _somebody_ was going to end up with a bleeding face and a tearstained t-shirt and he was beginning to think that it was going to be _him_.

And he did not like the sound of that.

And neither did _somebody_ else.

He didn't bother looking to see who was beeping his morpher. It was the same person who had beeped it yesterday, and the day before _that_, and he still only had the same answer that he had the last few times.

The same unsatisfying, _stupid_ answer.

At the rate they were going everyone was going to start ignoring each other.

"_What the hell is your brother doing?_

He flopped his head to the side dejectedly, wondering if there would ever be a time again when Tori _wouldn't_ be mad at him. Seriously, this wasn't his fault.

He sighed and glared at his morpher.

"I. _Don't_. Know."

And then he hung up, because smart people _know_ when to retreat.

-:-:-:-:-:-

-:-:-:-:-:-

-:-:-:-:-:-

Tori frowned down at her morpher, only mildly surprised that Blake had hung up on her. The rational part of her mind suggested that if she were in his shoes she would have done the same thing, but she was too frustrated to pay it too terribly much attention. She had bigger fish to fry, and if Blake didn't have anything to tell her then she would go to somebody that _would_. Someone who specialized in gathering intelligence.

"_Go for Cam."_

"Is _everyone_ going insane?"

She couldn't help herself, this was nuts. Hunter ignoring Shane for a little while…okay, slightly acceptable, he's crazy. They accepted that. They were all a little crazy. But this, this was blatant and hurtful and _stupid_. And Shane was just taking it like he deserved it or something.

And now Blake was avoiding her and nobody seemed to know _anything_ and she really, really wanted to start smacking some sense into _somebody_. She would take anybody at this point.

Cam didn't hesitate to reply.

"_Doubtful."_

…well, at least she could depend on the tech's dry sarcasm to be constant. There was some comfort in that.

She sighed, rubbing the side of her head. She could feel the migraine waiting to attack.

"Cam, I'm serious. What the hell is Hunter up to?"

Cam had to know. He was _Cam_. And…_whoa_, she was beginning to sound a little like Dustin, but Cam had to have some kind of idea or theory or…something as to why this was going on. Otherwise why would he let it keep going? After Shane and Hunter, Cam was pretty much the next one in charge.

Why wasn't he _taking charge?_

There was a more subdued, but similar sigh on the other end of the line, _"I would probably be the least qualified to answer that."_

_Yeah, I get it; you and Hunter don't like each other. Get over it._

She gritted her teeth, trying to keep back from biting out some sarcastic remark. She did _not_ have time for this.

"Well the _most_ qualified guy just hung up on me, so I'm asking you," she paused a moment, taking a steady breath to regain some sense of…pleasantness. She shouldn't take out her frustrations on Cam.

She started again, calmer. "Got any theories?"

_Please say you have theories._

There was a small hesitation on the other end of the line. Tori waited, patiently, and was rewarded with a quiet declaration.

"_He isn't being tampered with by any outside sources."_

_He isn't…_

…wait

What?

She shouldn't be this surprised. "You ran tests?"

Of _course_ Cam would run tests. Anything and everything, cover all the bases, and if Hunter wasn't being tampered with…

Cam confirmed her fears.

"_He's clean. He's choosing this course of action deliberately."_

But-

"Why?" She asked, wanting, _needing_ to know. Before Cam could formulate an answer there was another set of familiar beeps on the line, indicating that Cam had another caller.

He sighed, not tired just…saddened.

"_That's Dustin. I've got to go."_

Before she could protest her line was cut off, leaving her with nothing but static and a sour feeling in her stomach.

_Why?_

Perhaps the world would never know.

She growled, slamming her hand down on her desk with a lot more force than necessary.

No, she would figure it out. _Someone_ had to.

-:-:-:-:-:-

-:-:-:-:-:-

-:-:-:-:-:-

Dustin started off as Cam had expected him to, mildly frantic and guilty, bordering on irrational.

"_Dude, I was wrong, you were right, we shouldn't have lied."_

No, Cam knew beyond a doubt that there had been no right answer. With either of the decisions Hunter had presented them, to support his falsity or to claim the truth, both would have ultimately led to the creation of these circumstances. Hunter's behavior was beyond their control. The negative actions resulting of were no more their fault than the lack of oxygen in space. It was inevitable. Hunter had made his decision and the rest of them would just have to accept the consequences until they could prepare a more effective plan of attack.

By his defeated tone Cam could tell that Dustin was on the cusp of making this revelation, but unfortunately wasn't there yet. He was attempting to understand, to allocate blame in order to comprehend that which bore no definite reason. As though they had some control.

As though they could have prevented this.

Cam wanted to comfort his loved one; he wanted to explain to…

But there wasn't anything he could say that Dustin would accept. Not right now.

"Dustin…"

He wasn't allowed to finish before the storm simmering in Dustin's mind took over and Cam was pushed aside, the mechanic already moving on before he could say anything.

"_You know, I'll just tell Shane. I'll tell Shane and everything will be okay. We'll be okay." _

And with that declaration Cam was left alone once more with nothing to show for it.

Shane needed to start talking.

_Someone_ needed to.

Before the team completely collapsed inside itself, suffering the loss of one of its braces. Without support, they were nothing.

-:-:-:-:-:-

-:-:-:-:-:-

-:-:-:-:-:-

Shane wasn't thinking about Hunter.

Shane wasn't thinking about Hunter because Hunter certainly wasn't thinking about _him_ and he refused to allow himself to become so pathetic, so damn needy that he would obsess over someone who had clearly decided he was worth nothing at the end of the day. Not worth talking to, not worth fighting, not worth working with.

Non-existent.

Nothing.

So Shane wasn't thinking about Hunter.

Unfortunately couldn't broadcast this fact to the rest of the team, because that _would_ have involved like…addressing Hunter, so he couldn't really control any of _them_ talking to him about…it.

Yeah…it.

He wasn't surprised that Dustin was the first to crack, though Shane thought that maybe with Cam the yellow ranger might have lasted a little bit longer.

Pero _no_.

"_Dude, I'm sorry, we lied. Hunter totally didn't put up a fight about the…well, you know. And I'm not sure why he's mad but if that changes anything-"_

"It doesn't."

Shane hadn't really processed the words before he said them, didn't have to think about them because of the truth of it. It hadn't been important.

It didn't change anything.

Dustin was quiet on the other end of the line and Shane felt for him, knowing how confused he must be. The mechanic just wanted to make things better.

But that wasn't up to him.

"…_it doesn't?"_

There was so much hope in his tone Shane almost wanted to find Hunter and smack him around a bit; because this wasn't just between them anymore it was affecting everyone. Shane didn't mind being kicked around a bit, he knew what he was getting into with Hunter, but involving the others…

This was going too far.

He shook his head, taking a steady breath. "This isn't your fault Dustin."

The silence Shane received in return was enough for him to know that the yellow ranger didn't believe him, and he sighed, trying to think of a better way to explain…

"…_I've gotta go."_

Shane didn't bother trying to stop him from hanging up. He wasn't sure what to do anymore. The team…_their_ team was...and he wanted to do something about it. He _needed_ to do something about _this_. But what were his other choices? By this point he had actually _tried_ to engage in some basic small talk. Nothing big, just the weather, sports, hell, even ranger business. In _public_, that's how desperate he was getting.

And for all his effort he was getting nothing. Not a cold stare, not even a look of annoyance, just…nothing.

He just…

…

…he just needed to wait it out, that's all. It was unpleasant but…

When Hunter was ready, he'd be ready.

It was just going to take a little longer than he had originally thought.

* * *

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* * *

Endnotes:

Raw and unbeta'd because…you know, shit happens sometimes.

If you see any glaring errors feel free to PM me : )

Do we like how Ninja Ops just keeps getting these magical rooms? It's magic I tells yah, and totally _not_ lack of creativity.

Totally.

Aaaaaand, no worries, jerkface Hunter will redeem himself quite soon. Thanks to some major help from ever wonderfully magnificent ValkyrieNyght this story's actually gotten _*gasp*_ planned out to the very end. That's right folks, there is a light at the end of the tunnel, and it is _glorious._

…not that I'm biased or anything.

I'm excited, now that I'm finally getting near the end of my training wheels story. Not sure what I'll do without her. I mean, I _suppose_ I could work on "Into the Woods". What's it been? Seven months? Pff, it's simmering. And I've got a couple of other stories waiting in the wings that I'm pretty excited about.

Go team fight!

A big thanks to everyone who reviewed last chapter! Valkyrie, Rogue, and agd888, you guys are awesomepants. Seriously, pants made of awesome, that is you.

And in closing…

"Without you" _might_ be a bit extreme to describe where their relationship is right now, but the only other thing I could think of was "Something There" from Beauty and the Beast and that was just _waaaay_ to happy.

No, _now_ we have to be all depressed and frustrated and _sterf_.

Until next time.


	48. The More You Ruv Someone

Chapter 48

The More You Ruv Someone

(The more you want to kill them)

I don't own Avenue Q.

* * *

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* * *

About a week and a half into his brilliant, not-so-brilliant plan of ignoring Shane's entire existence Hunter was beginning to think that the rest of the team really _was_ as incredibly stupid as he initially thought they were. With Shane…to be honest he had stopped recognizing anything Shane did after about a day because his brain would latch onto _that_ like it was what kept the world going round and if he ever _stopped_ thinking about it they were all going to die. And then he'd overanalyze all these different options to the point that he couldn't even remember what he was actually analyzing (which was a new kind of pathetic, for him, and he was beginning to sound uncomfortably like Cam) and then it would all boil down to the depressed sigh, kicked puppy look Shane seemed to be continuously sporting nowadays and…

So yeah, Hunter had stopped thinking about Shane's reactions to everything. But everyone else was fair game, and they had to be morons.

Seriously, why else had no one stepped in yet? Aside from Blake…he didn't really count because he was more on Hunter's side than Shane's, but what happened to angry Tori and protective Cam? So far Dustin's the only one who even tried to ask him what Shane did and he couldn't even go completely through with it (and he probably could have made Hunter fold like a card table if he had asked a second time).

Hunter had honestly expected _someone_ to try punching him in the face by this point but so far all he got was nothing. Zilch. Nada.

Just one sad, depressed, stupid, _stupid_ red ranger who for some odd reason hadn't given up on him yet.

Hunter refused to feel hopeful. That would require thinking, about Shane, and that was going to end up with another broken blender and…

_Why what do we have here?_

The team was hanging around Storm Chargers when there was a disturbance in the force. Hunter had looked up in time from restocking the riding gloves to see what could only be an older Shane-spawn walking through the door, looking incredibly dapper in his business suit. Professional like without being stuffy but _still_ giving off the air of a guy that was a bit of a dick. It was the determined face. He was cruising for something, and he wasn't going to leave without it. Family reunions must be a real fun time at the Clarke household.

The guy was old, but not old enough to be Shane's dad so it was a sibling or cousin and one look was enough for Hunter to know that there was not a great deal of love in this relationship. Resentment. Disappointment. Years of poor communication resulting in this cold, forced _thing_ that held just the bare minimum of courtesy that was required when dealing with relatives.

This was not going to be good.

Hunter didn't like it, not at all because family business was always tricky, but Shane didn't seem upset enough to warrant any big reactions from any of _them_ so the blond pushed those initial feelings down and focused on his work.

But…hey, it wasn't his fault if he just _happened_ to overhear their conversation right? It was a small store after all.

"Shane," older Shane-kinsmen greeted, a small yet distinct amount of annoyance in his tone. While he nodded politely to Tori and Cam, Hunter restrained from throwing merchandise at the to-be-named-dick's head. It probably wouldn't help with the "stealth" vibe he was going for.

"Porter," Shane replied, Hunter wracking his brain until he recognized that particular tone of voice as tired. Not quite resigned, but getting there.

What did this Porter want?

Older brother didn't bother with any pleasantries before barking out orders.

Because, hey, is common courtesy _really _that important when you're out in public?

Apparently no.

He didn't even look at Shane, he was too busy checking his watch. "Grab your stuff; we've got to get to Dana's parade."

Hunter brushed away that flare of annoyance to mentally connected the dots. Dana was the younger sister Shane used to gripe about (probably still did, just...not to Hunter) so Porter (_the ass_) was wrangling Shane into some kind of holiday festivity centered around the little darling. Seeing as she was pretty much involved in _everything_ Shane wasted a lot of time with these little side trips that could be better devoted to…anything else. Most likely.

Though he had never met her, Hunter figured Dana was an attention whore. Without this ever important life source she'd _die_.

He wondered if that'd really be such a terrible loss.

Shane sighed, definitely tired, like he and Porter had already had this particular fight dozen's of times. They probably had, but Porter wasn't nice enough to just let it rest and decided to intrude upon the skater's personal place of refuge.

Shane tried to make a logical argument anyway, "I already went to her recital and the Christmas concert-"

Because she's a _whore_.

"Which you ducked out of," Porter interrupted, and Hunter knew he wasn't the only one cringing in sympathy. He remembered that night, Shane had tried to finish up the monster attack quickly so he could make it back for the end of his sister's concert of no-redeeming-value, but they just hadn't been able to make it. That's what happens when you make sure your job gets done right. Unfortunately he couldn't use that as an excuse.

The frustration had to be getting to the red ranger.

Shane's reply was quieter, with evident traces of guilt. "I was feeling sick."

It wasn't his fault.

Shane shouldn't be guilted for missing one lousy performance. He's been to like, ten of them in the past two months. Hunter would know, he had to hear about them.

The blond frowned, shoving the glove in his hand onto the wrack harder than necessary.

_Stupid jerk_.

Being the pleasant fellow he was, Porter didn't buy it and made sure Shane knew it.

"I'm sure you were," he replied sarcastically, talking down to his younger brother as though he was dealing with a particularly difficult toddler.

That doubt…that blatant disrespect raised Hunter's hackles. This "pleasant" conversation about family affairs going towards a place he didn't like, and if the tension kept building he knew _somebody_ was going to get nasty and it probably wouldn't be Shane.

The remaining option did not sit well with Hunter.

Could brothers really act like this?

Shane continued as though he hadn't heard the sarcastic barb, listing off his sister's other various December activities on his fingers. "The Winter Carnival thing, caroling tomorrow, and then there's that party where my attendance is apparently mandatory," he sighed quietly, still fighting what he had already perceived as a losing battle, "It's a parade; she won't even notice I'm not there."

Porter frowned, back tensing, "That's not the point." He grit his teeth, and he was ready for a fight. Not a real one, but this was it, the dam that Hunter was waiting for was about to burst. Except Shane had the preconceived notion that this was like every other fight he must have had with Porter, so he didn't recognize the powder keg he was about to set off until too late.

What to do?

The skater rubbed the side of his head, looking away from his older brother, expecting a short answer. "Then what is?"

And…_release the Kraken. _

Porter frowned, disappointment and frustration permeating his tone. "We're your family," he began, arms folding across his chest so he could get into the proper lecture position. "And I know you're probably too busy riding your skateboard or hanging around here to appreciate that," he explained, giving the shop a disapproving look over, "but we come first. Family's permanent, you don't get to be there when you _want_ to be, you just…" Porter stopped, tilting his head to get a better look at Shane. "Are you even listening?" He asked, voice disbelieving. Hunter didn't look but he knew Shane had to be blocking it out, keeping sane, he couldn't hit his brother.

This was getting out of hand.

Porter let out an annoyed huff. "See, _this_ is what I've been talking about," he threw up his hands in frustration, not caring about the attention he was drawing by the steady raise in volume, "you don't respect anything. You have no direction, no drive. You're just completely apathetic to everything aren't you? Just some teenage rebel, shooting the breeze." He dropped his arms, disgusted. "Grow up Shane. Do something with your life. Some kids would kill to have the family you've got."

And on that final inspirational note he checked his watch again, as though they could actually go through with the stupid parade thing after humiliating his little brother in public.

…

…Oh _hell_ no.

Hunter barely _had _a family and he knew that shit was way off base.

That did it, he was pissed.

Luckily they had finally got to the point in the conversation where Shane would verbally wipe the floor with this guy and reclaim his dignity and balance would be restored. No more sibling activities to be attended to. No need to get angry, everything would be fine. Hunter knew Shane had it in him; he just had to wait, see, and then-

"Alright," Shane muttered, head in his hands, "I got it." He stood up, keeping steady eye contact with his brother while refusing to look at the rest of the rangers, "Let me get my things."

And then he disappeared into the back of the shop like nothing had happened, and Hunter _knew_ he wasn't the only one looking completely shocked because _what the hell?_

…

…

…No.

No, no, damn it, _no_, this was _not_ happening. One guy being an ass and Shane just taking it was pushing it, but his own brother? Had this happened so many times that Shane didn't even bother fighting for himself anymore? That he didn't deserve it?

Did he actually believe this prick?

Hunter's mouth managed to catch up to his feet by the time he was spinning older-spawn around, and he was honestly impressed with the fact that he didn't give into his urges to punch the guy right then and there.

"Hey," he barked, gripping his stupid button up with both hands. Porter snapped out of his surprise long enough to look indignant and opened his mouth to object but Hunter cut him off. "Shut up."

Well, that was a strong start.

"I'm Hunter, and you know who's a bad guy?" He asked, trying to keep his voice down but _damn_ was it hard, "You know who's a rebel?" He leaned forward, staring this guy down, "_I _am. You could ask anyone in here and they would be happy to tell you that I am undeniably a dick."

It was true; there was no way anyone could object to it because truer words couldn't be spoken. He was honestly surprised Tori hadn't stood up and shouted amen when he said it.

Fortunately this guy appeared to be listening, which was good because Hunter _would_ have gotten violent had it been otherwise. Good, he was feeling educational.

"But that guy that just walked out," he motioned to the back door, only Dustin hovering at its opening, "the one you dressed down in front of all his friends, _that_ guy is nice. Ridiculously nice," he couldn't even think of a proper way to describe it but his mouth happily kept on going anyway. "I am talking the epitome of caring and consideration, lengths that are completely unnecessary to go to, he will go to, because he is _that nice._" He released one of the grips he had on the shirt to wave his arm in an attempt to emphasize this, as though it would help. He took a breath and motioned back to the door. "_That_ guy does right by people, _that_ guy tries to always do the right thing, even when he's not sure what it is, even when he doesn't _like_ it," and he's trying to get across the insanity of it all but Hunter has to stay angry or he's going to lose it. "Because he's mature. Because he's a good friend. Because he is a good person who doesn't demand anything of the world." He growled, taking a steady breath and focusing on the _real_ dressing down that needed to be happening. "You might call that apathy. _You_ might interpret that as not taking things seriously, but _he_ deserves some god damn respect and if you are half the mature adult you claim to be you will _give_ it to him."

Hunter stopped, tangent over but by no means done. It was time to get instructive.

He leaned forward, using every ounce of menace that he had in his body and refusing to hide it. "Now you are going to leave. You are going to leave and the next time you see Shane you are going to be pleasant and nice and helpful because that's what brother's are _supposed_ to be and if you don't…" he trailed off, settling back into the evil, wants-to-kill-everyone Hunter of yester year. Just to give that added hint of crazy. "Let's just say I have a special fondness for knives…and car tires, and I'm just _dying_ to think of an appropriate way to combine the two." He reveled in the fearful look in the older brother's eye, disbelief mixed with this genuine surprise that Hunter was thriving on. He smirked wickedly, and delivered the final blow, "But only if I get the proper motivation," he murmured, not hiding the threat.

After that he let him go, seeing out of the corner of his eye that Shane had returned somewhere in the middle of his little speech, looking just as shocked as the brother who had gotten the verbal smack down he deserved. Hunter immediately pushed all the feelings that spawned from that aside and motioned towards the door, impatience setting in. "_Go_."

He didn't need to be told twice.

Porter quickly exited with as much dignity as he could manage, and the tightness building in Hunter's chest finally dissipated. The others stared at him in silent confusion, not sure of what to say, and he didn't know either. That hadn't been a part of his plan. He hadn't thought much beyond fixing what was clearly a wrong in the world of Shane. He understood it was crazy, yes, he was treating Shane terribly, but like some possessive fourth grade girl he wanted to argue that only _he_ could do that. No one else got to kick Shane around, that was _his_ job. _His_. He had excuses. And dibs. And dibs were universal _god damnit_. And then more excuses, but mostly he had the misfortune of caring an uncomfortably great amount for this wonderfully stupid…no, not after that. He couldn't really insult Shane lightheartedly after seeing that. Not even in the comfort of his own brain.

Against what he might have previously assumed time did not, in fact, _stop_ while he dallied in his little mental claiming of territories and Shane had made his way over during Hunter's time out, hand on his arm and with the beginning of the words "Thank you-" coming into fruition.

Hunter didn't think. It wasn't his strong point today. He _should_ have thought because this _could_ have been an out. This could have been the restoration of normalcy.

But his body reacted before his brain could, going straight into what the set standby had been for dealing with Shane and before he knew it he was out the door in almost three seconds, calling his goodbye's to Kelly and shrugging off Shane's hand as though it were nothing.

Nothing.

He should turn around. He should turn around right now and get on his knees and come up with as many different ways to apologize as he could, but instead he kept walking.

He was kind of stupid like that.

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Nobody said anything, and Shane didn't either. There was nothing left to say. The hits were coming too fast, first Porter, and then _Hunter_ and…

How was it that the most difficult relationships he had just happened to be some of the most important ones?

He didn't…he couldn't do this, not here. He needed some space, he needed…he needed to leave. To take a page from Hunter's book and get going before he had to look at the others.

Shane didn't want their sympathy, he didn't want their words.

That's not what he needed.

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Running helped. Fresh air plus physical exertion was always a winning combination for Shane, allowing him to work off all that excess anger and frustration so that he could deal with the mess that was building up inside his head. He didn't understand it. He just couldn't understand Hunter. And sure, at this point this shouldn't be this frustrating because it's not like the crimson ranger had been easy to follow before, it's just _now_…

Why? Why'd he do it? Why'd he stand up for Shane? His entire goal for destruction or pride or the renewal of barriers was to pointedly _not_ do anything that involved Shane, to inspire misery or anger or frustration in the red ranger. To put it in the most basic, most understandable terms, he wanted to make Shane feel bad. And he succeeded. He _super_ succeeded. He was the winner a thousand times over and Shane was nothing but hopeless and confused and wishing desperately that he didn't have to play anymore. Shane had surrendered.

Wouldn't Porter being…well, Porter, loudly, in front of everyone he knew and cared about, wouldn't just…allowing that to carry on uninterrupted be enough for Hunter? Because that only contributed to what he wanted right? It added to his end goal _and_ he didn't even have to do it. That should have been a win-win. Maybe Shane would have been better with that. Would have preferred for everything to carry on as it was as opposed to...to feeling hopeful again. Feeling like he might have gotten his friend back, that they were fine and they didn't even have to start over, that Hunter really _did_ care and they wouldn't have to keep doing _this_ stupid, ridiculously _thing_ anymore. It would just be a funny story they would tell some time in the future, some awful thing that would become a fond memory, as strange as that sounded.

Hunter had to give him _all_ that, that made him feel that much better, just before ruthlessly tearing it away, dangling it just out of reach and laughing at Shane's attempts to get it back.

Was this all just a game to him? Is that why he did it, because he knew it would make Shane feel worse? Or was it because he was the one with Shane-abuse rights and shame to the person who thought they could cut in on that action. That would not do. Only Hunter the jerk, the tool, the…insane, twisted, _ridiculous_ excuse for a human being was allowed to make the red ranger feel bad. Those were the rules.

Distantly, Shane registered the fact that Hunter could only affect him if he allowed it to happen. That he crimson ranger could only rile him up if he gave into his bait but somewhere along the line the pure _lunacy_ that Hunter had infected his brain and he just _couldn't_ think of…he just couldn't detach from it. Clean his hands of this entire mess.

But why? That didn't make sense either. Why the hell was Hunter so important that he was willing to put up with all this crap? This wasn't what a normal friendship entailed. Sure, normal and Hunter didn't really go together but this was so far off base that it wasn't even in the same _realm_ as friendship. It was somewhere else entirely, something new that wasn't labeled. A special place where they were stuck in this constant loop of overreactions and over analyzing and _way_ too much emotion.

It was strange, thinking back on it. Shane hadn't even worried once about how much he was obsessing over Hunter. Ever sense the whole love-potion thing it just seemed like thinking about Hunter was easier. Not that he was still on a love-high or anything, just that…like maybe there had been this mental roadblock there, that kept him safe from the older Bradley's world and the potion just took it out. Just made him start thinking and he hadn't stopped since then.

But that _wasn't_ anything to be worried about. Shane liked Hunter. Eventually, once he gave him a chance. Hanging out with Hunter was actually fun. Underneath all the brooding and sarcasm was a guy who was…actually kind of goofy. But he tried to hide it, for the sake of machismo, Shane figured. Or to keep himself safe, to keep from appearing "weak". But sometimes his guard would drop and Shane would get to see the relaxed Hunter, who was fun, and regular Hunter, who was a genuinely nice guy who cared about his friends.

Hunter had principals, and rules, and a structure he lived by. He took care of Shane when he hadn't wanted it; he looked after all of them and didn't ask for anything in return. Shane missed hanging out with him. He missed being able to share his ideas for the team with him, to receive the other's blunt but honest feedback.

Shane fought off a smirk as he darted through a cluster of trees, ducking under the branches.

_This_ is what he should be worried about. How badly his missed Hunter. He never thought he'd see the day where he actually _wanted_ the crimson ranger around, let alone mourned his absence. If his past self could only see him now, he'd be crying. Or laughing. He _was_ getting kind of pathetic.

What was he doing anyway? He hadn't even been in the wrong, not even a little, and this is what he got? Couldn't Hunter see how much he was willing to change for him? What Shane was willing to do because of how much he cared about him? He wouldn't put up with this crap for just anybody. No, Shane did it for _Hunter_, changed himself for _Hunter's_ benefit and the guy couldn't even take the freaking time of day to appreciate that and…

And…

…

…_whoa_

Shane slowed down to a halt, slumping against the tree closest to him as he cradled his head in his hands, stunned by a sudden understanding.

He had been so caught up in _his_ feelings and Hunter's feelings that he hadn't taken the time to stand back and follow the logic of what he actually had been doing.

He, Shane Clarke, had greatly, and without concern, adapted _himself_ just so that he could…he could make Hunter happier. So that he could make Hunter more comfortable. And then when he…when Hunter delivered his unreasonable and illogical response to this alteration, instead of calling him out on it, or outright refusing it, Shane had accepted it and adapted _again_, once more for Hunter's benefit.

And it was _insane_. It didn't even make any sense, but he had gone along with it anyway because the only thing he wanted, the only thing he _needed_ was for Hunter to be happy, regardless of the effects it had on himself.

…

…

He cared about Hunter's happiness more than he cared about his own.

...

…that's a little bit beyond the call of friendship. Rephrase, that _wasn't_ friendship. That was something else entirely. Shane felt something else entirely for Hunter that had nothing to do with the act of befriending someone and everything to do with being…romantically involved with them.

…

…_holy shit_.

He was in love with Hunter Bradley.

The first laugh sort of barked out of him, clumsy and loud all on its own, and was quickly followed by a flood of uncontrollable laughter. Soon he was clutching his ribs, aching from it.

Of course. Of course he would be in love with Hunter. Of _course_, he didn't even question it, didn't know why he hadn't seen it before, because it made sense. Why everything seemed to be such higher stakes with him, not because he was the crimson ranger, or that he wasn't like everyone else, it was because he was freaking _crazy_ and Shane somehow loved him for it. This wasn't aftereffects of the love potion, this wasn't desperation derived from loneliness, this wasn't a mental breakdown or…

This was him wanting, _needing_ this stupid, damaged person to be happy. To be able to talk to him, to be allowed into his inner sanctum.

And _why_ wasn't he panicking about that? Hunter was a guy. A male. With male bits that were very similar, if not exactly, like his own, and to this point in time he had never desired, nor even subconsciously hinted at _wanting_…that but…

Hell, maybe he was over thinking this. Or maybe he was under thinking this to an unnatural extent, but he would like to think…well, a relationship wasn't for looks right? You're supposed to love the inside (so when you both inevitably become old and wrinkly prune skins that "spark" is always there), so maybe…the insides he that he was really fond of, really wanted just _happened_ to be inside another dude.

…was it really just that simple?

He thought back onto those euphoric, love-high moments of so long ago and distinctly remembered that _that_, indeed, was what he had been focusing on. The physical stuff…that was a plus, but the company…

He still couldn't believe how easily he was willing to accept this, but at this point it was the only _logical_ option. That and, you know, he really cared for the guy.

Funny how you could not notice something for so long, and then after one sudden realization you see it freaking _everywhere_. Weird. But…

…

…

…aw, _damn_.

He was in love with Hunter Bradley. The stupid, crazy, constant defy-er of social normalities that currently held absolutely no desire to speak to him.

…yet.

Shane smiled, feeling for the first time in a long while relaxed and satisfied. Everything was going to be okay.

Because Hunter _did_ care about him, enough to stand up for him. And Hunter cared that _he_ cared about the blond in return. And Hunter liked hanging out with him (because otherwise he wouldn't bother with him) and while he was…difficult, in the end all Shane had to do was wait and he would come "crawling back", looking as sorry as ever.

Yes, patience would win the day this time.

But this passive waiting thing, it wasn't doing it for him. Nah, it was time to get proactive. If Hunter didn't want to talk, that was fine, but since Shane finally knew they were cool…

His smile widened, and he rubbed his hands together, giddy with anticipation.

He would put Dustin to _shame_ with his constant babbling. He would hold one-sided conversations until Hunter finally broke down and admitted to the errors of his ways.

And after that…well, he'd tackle the "after" later. One step at a time.

He was in love with Hunter Bradley.

…and he would _never_ hear the end of it from Tori.

_Never_.

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Endnotes:

The original title of this chapter was going to be "Toad to the Rescue" simply because next chapter was going to be "Merry Almost Christmas" and in the show TttR was the song preceding it and since Hunter does do some rescuing I thought it fit. But then I remembered this lovely little ditty from Avenue Q and I just couldn't say no.

Yeah, we got to _this_ chapter. That's right, it was time. No more doddling. I shan't get into the details for the select few that choose to read the endnotes first (you know who I'm talking about *wink* *wink*) but let's all celebrate the fact that didn't get dragged on nearly as long as it could have!

Yay, learning!

Double rainbow thanks to every and all persons of interest who reviewed last chapter. Agd888, Rogue, and Valkyrie, I'm talking to you cool cats.

And triple; quadruple thanks to Valkyrie for helping me figure out how to get Hunter to do a nice thing while he is carrying out a distinctly _not_-nice plan. I hope I did the "talk down" justice.

Sorry I didn't get this out sooner; my beta's been a little busy.

Until next time.


	49. No Day But Today

Chapter 49

No Day But Today

I don't own Rent...still. Though I'm okay with that.

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Hunter's getting the uncomfortable feeling that he might have broken Shane.

Not…well, not entirely, or not in the true meaning of the word, more like he broke him so much he _fixed_ him (were he egotistical enough to believe it) if that made any sense. Hunter could have sworn up and down that Shane had reached his breaking point (like, the one for actual breaking, not this new, peppy, incredibly _not_-breaking thing) as inspired by Hunter demonstrating how wonderfully awful a person he was, but instead of participating in the expected event of giving up, the skater was somehow…fixed.

And Hunter wasn't the only one being startled by the sudden change in the weather; no one else had seen it coming either. Just one day Hunter was ignoring the red ranger with flying colors and inspiring many much inner-tears-of sorrow, and the next day his ignoring with flying colors was responded to with friendly, unphased, cheerful conversation. Not to be thrown (though for the record, he was, and suck it to anyone who looked down on him for it), Hunter continued his ignoring with much greater skill and dexterity, taking the blocking out of human interactions to there highest and furthest extremes. To which Shane responded by _continuing_ to talk to him, and Hunter wasn't sure if he should feel relieved or baffled or just sad that the skater hadn't thought to do that earlier because it probably would have saved them all a bunch of heartache. Stupid respectfulness of boundaries.

It's _stupid_.

So he managed to break Shane so much that he was _un_-broken (or fixed as normal people would call it but Hunter couldn't respectfully think that in regards to Shane, he just _couldn't_) and Hunter wasn't entirely sure what to do about it. Talking back was definitely an option. An easy option. The worst possible result from taking this option would be for Shane to talk back….or ignore him…

…or punch him in the face.

Damn, he's been cooped up inside his head for so long he forgot how _normal_ people reacted to things. He was losing his connection to humanity, why god, _why_, and-

See, he's broken Shane so well into un-brokenness that he must have broken himself. Clearly, this was the only logical option.

…and _now_ he's beginning to sound a bit like Dustin.

Shit.

This was what his world was becoming.

He was frustrated because it would be _so_ easy just to give in and let this thing die a horrible death in a ditch somewhere. All he had to do was open his mouth and Shane would welcome him back like a good shepherd waiting patiently for the brain-damaged sheepling to find its way. Yeah, pity the baby-sheep, it doesn't know any better. Sure it acts out with malicious intent but it'll come back to the way of sunshine and _love_ eventually, no need to get upset.

He was frustrated because it shouldn't be that easy. It shouldn't. He deserved something. He deserved to be yelled at or face-smashed or _something_. He deserved to be punished. He didn't deserve easy forgiveness, especially not from Shane.

Which is why when Tori of all people managed to corner him mano y mano in his and Blake's new living quarters at Ninja Ops, Hunter knew that he had reached the light at the end of the tunnel. Yes, he knew some part of his body would probably be injured and yes, there would be yelling, but those slight negatives were immediately overwhelmed by a feeling of relief. He needed someone else's words. He _needed_ someone, anyone (he would have even taken Cam) to kick his ass into proper working condition again.

Some of this must have read through his eyes when they studied each other in silence because her glare softened a little just before she pulled back her fist and smacked him in the arm, hard enough to bruise. He didn't bother ducking, or moving, in case she wanted to do it again, but she seemed satisfied with just the one blow and moved on to guiding him towards the couch. As was required when having a heart-to-heart like this.

He was becoming a seasoned pro. Much to his shame.

She had a hold on both sides of his shoulders, as though ready to shake sense into him at a moments notice and stared into his eyes, serious and thoroughly encapsulating the _"tough love"_ vibe. The, _"I like you but I want to wring your scrawny, little neck"_ love. Hunter was very familiar with this feeling.

"Hunter," she said quietly, but with a firm, resolute tone that would allow for no arguments, "you're being a moron."

The gradual tightening of her grip suggested that she wanted to go for a little more than just a punch to the arm but she was nice enough to hold it back, because while the rest of them tended to run around like headless ninnies when Tori had a goal she didn't let _anything_ get in her way. Responsible. Mature. Adult.

A little bit scary.

…a lot scary.

Hunter didn't offer any of his opinions on the matter, even though he wholeheartedly agreed and Tori continued, calm and precise.

"I fact you are being _such_ a moron that the word no longer does your particular brand of stupidity justice. It cannot possibly ever hope to accurately describe what a moronic, imbecilic, _unmatchable_ ignoramus that you are." Her voice never rose above a normal conversational level, but the frustration and suppressed need to murder was still loud and clear.

She frowned and tilted her head, as though scouring her brain to properly explain his ineptitude while never breaking eye contact. She wouldn't do him that favor. "Other morons are in awe at the level of idiocy you have achieved, so much that they would have made you their leader _happily_ if only you could be contained by the mere label of _moron_."

She closed her eyes, taking a steady breath and loosening her grip. He would feel that tomorrow.

Her eyes snapped open, back on track. "But that aside, you are still our friend. You are still _Shane's_ friend," she emphasized his name, staring Hunter dead in the eye, "And since Shane is also _my_ friend I'm going to kindly ask you to take your head out of your ass and man up to the fact that there are people out there who _like_ you."

Um…

Well…

Not…entirely the direction he thought this was going to go, and Tori caught onto this fact and continued, sad but strong. "As strange as it sounds there are people other than your brother who _care_ about you. You, Hunter Bradley." In case he got confused, not that he really blames her for the clarification. He had been somewhat of a dunce lately.

"And while you might not like it, or are used to it, or expected it, you like _them_ back." He wasn't sure if he's grateful for the fact she's saying _them_ instead of Shane, because they both know what this is about, but she's on a roll anyway and he's not going to make stop her just to reassure his insecurities. Not really his thing.

She was mad and they both knew it, agitated, but there was still this tiny hint of sorrow in her eyes as she explained it. Not quite pity, she wouldn't do that to him, just…maybe hurt, that she actually had to explain this to him. Maybe that's why this had festered so long; no one thought he needed this. Like he was given the problem two plus two and of course he would get it right? Something that basic? Easy cake. Except he _didn't_. His entire world was based on assumptions and observations and surviving. Keeping Blake safe. Keeping _himself_ safe. He didn't know, didn't bother thinking that he could possibly posses these things that normal people had.

He hadn't wanted it spelled out for him, but he _needed_ it.

And that's where Tori came in.

She continued, thumb rubbing circles on the side of his arm, guiding him back into the world of the living with a calm, commanding tone. "This is _normal_. It's _okay_. You are allowed to be close to people. You are allowed to have friends. You are allowed to have people care about you and you're going to have to face the fact oh stupendous emperor of morons, that once we got a taste of you we aren't ever letting go." The insult was more for his benefit than it was to wound him, allowing for that constant stream of concern to be interrupted. Good call. Too much too fast might break him.

The thumbs stopped moving and she gripped on tight, getting to the big finale. "You can push us away all you want, you can try to treat us as horribly as possible, but we will wait for you."

And she meant it, partially, but they both know that she's speaking for Shane, and she sighed quietly, shaking her head.

"You, Hunter Bradley, are stuck with us. Forever. You cannot win. Hell, there's nothing _too_ win. You've already won. You _know_ that."

The determined face is back, and whatever pity points he won over by confused silence are overtaken by that silent, simmering rage. "So you are _going_ to apologize and then you are _going_ to treat Shane not as a nuisance, not as a friend, but as kindly and as friendly and as _nicely_ as _everyone else_ knows you want to treat him. You are going to apologize like no one's _business_ and when he takes you back you are _not_ going to feel guilty, or angry, or mope, or think that you _deserve_ nothing."

He couldn't hide the surprise, couldn't even think to try, because he _knew_ he never told that to anyone, not even Blake. Was she psychic? Was she in his brain? Did she know voodoo?

Seeing his reaction she just rolled her eyes and let go of his arms, leaning back against the couch like a _boss_.

"I'm not psychic, I'm a girl," she explained, "I have eyes and I use them."

…

…that pretty much settled it. Tori was the most badass person on their team. Had to be. She was the only _sane_ one among them.

Ladies and gentlemen, Tori Hanson, supreme ass-kicker.

She studied the ceiling lazily for a moment, stewing something over, and then frowned at him again, looking sad. "I want to punch you again."

Which seemed reasonable.

"You should," he offered, sincerely meaning it. It was the least he could do.

She thought about this and shook her head, silent epiphany dawning on her that she didn't feel inclined to share. "No…" she muttered, a smile playing across her face, "I shouldn't."

Before he could object, or ask what the hell went on inside a girls brain, or what other secrets she knew that they could exploit for their entertainment she left, darting out the door far more cheerfully than she had entered it. Confusing. Mind-freakin'-boggling-confusing, but…

He felt better, strangely enough. Just what the doctor ordered. Now he just needed to figure out a way to apologize to Shane that was befitting of his crimes.

So…Blake?

Yeah, why not give him a try. Under normal circumstances Hunter would have turned to Cam, just so he could kick his pride in the face real good, but that guy _sucked_ at apologizing. And he didn't want to know what Dustin would suggest.

Copious amounts of pillows and chocolate were sort of out of his budget.

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The benefits of having your brother's girlfriend be an extreme badass was that she could use her powers against the team's tech wizard to coerce/force/demand a fake meeting call to lure Shane into Ninja Ops. Sure, Hunter could have asked Cam himself but…yeah, this was more fun. And effective. Between Dustin and Tori, Hunter had himself a personally scheduled meeting with everyone's favorite red ranger. The excess involvement was something he had to adjust to but hell, he had bothered all of them with his stupidity too, the least he could do was let them help.

When Cyber Cam had hailed him with a thirty second proximity warning Hunter checked the door one more time. Blake had said something about a last minute addition to the plan, not feeling the need to inform Hunter what it exactly _was_ (cuz, you know, it's not like he's nervous or anything, he's _totally_ good) and if he didn't get here in the next ten seconds Hunter was going to tell his girlfriend as many embarrassing childhood memories as he could possibly think of. He'd probably make up a few of them too, just to add to the navy ranger's humiliation, and no Hunter was _not_ trying to distract himself from the fact that in less than thirty seconds he was going to own up to what a humongous jag he had been. And nothing else, because it wasn't like he was going to pour his heart and soul out right now anyway right? It wasn't like he had to profess his undying love, all he had to do was open up his mouth, apologize, and _maybe_ get a hug, if that, so he needed to _stop_ worrying and-

"Catch."

The instinct to stop the thing moving towards his face initiated before Hunter had processed Blake's command, and the little bastard was back out the door before Hunter could belittle him for it (affectionately). Not that he would have had time to because no sooner had his brother streaked off into the distance then Shane appeared, appropriately ninja-garbed-up just to remind Hunter how sexy he could look sometimes…most times...(always).

The air ninja paused; understanding dawning on him as he silently re-evaluated the situation, recognizing that it was a set-up. He seemed thoughtful but appropriately apathetic so that Hunter would have to do the talking (because he was just a _darling_ like that) before halting on the object in Hunter's hands, his hard-worked poker face immediately being melting away into open confusion.

Hunter didn't bother looking down, he knew what they were.

…that

Freaking.

_Bastard._

He was going to kill Blake.

Hunter was torn between the powerful urge to throw the bouquet of flowers as far away as humanely possible and wondering that if he just _didn't_ address them Shane wouldn't either, except that was the opposite of what he was supposed to be doing now, he was _supposed_ to be turning over a new leaf and how could he do that if they were ignoring some damn flowers and maybe he should just pretend he didn't know Shane was going to be here either, or maybe he could just run away because living alone forever wasn't _that_ bad and-

"Hunter," Shane interrupted, bringing the blond's wildly moving internal monologue to a screeching halt, "chill."

Hunter blinked, an immediate sense of calm washing over him.

Chill, right, because he was Hunter Bradley. He was Hunter Bradley and he was_ not_ a crazy, stupid, wuss. Hunter Bradley didn't chicken-out, or freak-out, or…blow-out and he didn't give up and he wasn't going to start _now_ just because of something like a bouquet of red roses. He wasn't. And he _wasn't_ going to do _this_ anymore; he wasn't going to be this guy because this guy really, really sucked. No one liked this guy. The old guy though, he was okay. Not the best, but he was workable.

Now he was going to give Shane these stupid red flowers in the manliest, most platonic, friendly-way feasible, own up to his failures and accept whatever Shane threw at him like a man.

He thrust his arm out before he could change his mind, presenting the bouquet with as much nonchalance as he could muster for this kind of event. Smile in place, a real smile, genuine and heartfelt and stupidly good looking, Shane relieved him of his burden, brushing his fingers across the tips of the petals with an ease and gentleness that just wasn't fair. God, this was the rest of his life. Just soaking in every, _little_ detail of Shane Clarke. He couldn't help it, but at least he didn't feel pathetic. Not with how satisfied he felt.

The brown eyes were back on him, bouquet lowered to Shane's side and Hunter forced himself still, willing his fingers into non-twitching obedience.

"I'm sorry," he blurted, distracting his hands with a death-grip against the side of his pants. "I…uh, overreacted."

He wanted to wince, or punch himself at how horribly inadequate his explanation was but he closed his eyes instead, waiting for the explosion that would follow. There would probably be a good rant followed by his nose being broken (again) and then a little more yelling before-

"Hunter."

Would everyone _stop_ interrupting? How hard is it to have an internal rant?

These people were _so_ _demanding._

He opened his eyes, irritated, only to see a calm and collected Shane studying him carefully. There was no tension in his body, no indication that he was about to attack, or yell or…anything really. There was just a small hint of the sadness Tori had when they had done their heart-to-heart, but for the most part Shane just looked…happy. Content.

It looked good on him.

The leader cocked his head to the side casually, a small smile playing across his face. "We're okay."

The "_That's it? No hitting?" _thought process must have played across Hunter's face because Shane immediately let out a bark of laughter and moved forward, throwing his arms across Hunter's shoulders and pulling into a hug, still chuckling. Hunter sank into the hold gradually, knowing that this was his actual punishment but pushing the thought aside to soak up the feelings, the happy vibrations. He slowly pushed his hands around Shane's back, hating him, because this wasn't how friends hugged, this was closer, more intimate. He rested his head against the red's shoulder, Shane's fingers immediately combing through his hair like he had the right (though Hunter almost couldn't remember a time when he hadn't surrendered that to Shane, when he _didn't_ have it) and he hated him some more. Hated and loved him just a little bit more as stupidly gushing and stupid and god…_damnit_…

Just…

He…

It shouldn't be this easy. He shouldn't be this easily forgiven, he _shouldn't_. But just like with the evil-mind-beam thing, and the making-out-with-Dustin thing, and the love potion, and ruining pie night, and all these little mistakes he couldn't help but make they…Shane welcomed him back. _Wanted_ him back.

Gun to head, knife to throat, thunder and lightning and Lothor bearing down on him Hunter would never be able to properly describe how good that felt.

And maybe there would be a day when Shane would have enough of him, and he would grow up and move on and Hunter would just be some dusty memory fading in the back of his mind, but even if that _did_ happen, even if it was inevitable, there's no damn point in speeding up the process is there?

He would take what he could get, and enjoy it while it lasted.

Damn the consequences.

Shane didn't seem like he was going to let go any time soon, so Hunter simply relished the moment, knowing that this would probably be what the rest of his life was like.

And, well…

It could be worse.

A whole lot worse.

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Endnotes:

Short? Yes. Anti-climactic? Perhaps. Is next chapter going to be awesome? It better freaking be.

I deliver unto you Tori. Because she exists, and has a right to wrangle all these crazy people into a semblance of structure and…reasonableness.

We are nearing the end of the road ladies and gentlemen, and while I shall reserve being sentimental for the actual ending, I cannot help but re-iterate how grateful I am for the you folks that muddled through the messy beginning to make it this far. I will never be able to properly express how much I appreciate this, it is more than I deserve.

In summary: You guys are awesome, beyond hot dogs and lemon squares, and should celebrate this fact daily. Fact.

Thank you to everyone who reviewed last chapter! Rogue and Valkyrie, you are the devils on my shoulders and I wouldn't have made it this far without you : ) The real vampire, you made my day. And several days to follow, this is true. The fact that I managed to pull you into a pairing that you weren't familiar with and actually like it has made me over-the-moon happy. And I'm glad you like my Hunter (and Dustin, as he is whimsy personified), it took awhile to get him where he needed to be. I have no idea if I'll get back to addressing Dustin's fear. Probably not in this story. There is the possibility for one-shots in this verse, if it doesn't end up with a sequel.

Did a speed beta-through, so if there are any glaring errors feel free to pm me.

Until next time.


	50. Till Him

Chapter 50

Till Him

I don't own the Producers.

References to Sensei Switcharoo. And then some made up monsters.

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With everything under control, at least for the moment, Shane was finally able to sit back and enjoy the holiday season. He and Hunter were fine, there was a lull in Lothor's attacks and Shane was _finally_ done with all family obligations. There were no more parties, concerts, caroling, or parades that needed his attendance. All he needed to do was put in an appearance on Christmas morning and then it was off to Ninja Ops to celebrate with his team. With Dustin practically living there it housed the majority of the team, so it only made sense for it to be their convergence point when it came to celebrating the holidays.

He _supposed_ a majority of this new feeling of contentment could be contributed to the fact that he and Hunter were on speaking terms.

He knew it would be rough, a little, or at least moderately, but for the most part…

For the most part he felt unstoppable, like a winner.

He had Hunter back.

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Maybe Hunter shouldn't have made up with Shane. Yeah, he's got it; he was the champion of wishy-washy ninny-ing about, but still. He wasn't a masochist or anything; it's just that something as simple as him apologizing to Shane had made the red ranger like…ridiculously happy. It was ludicrous. Not the-it sounded wrong when he left it at that, but the…_intensity_ of it, that's what bothered him. Kind've…sort've…if he was allowed to still be finicky about such things. There would probably never be a time when he wasn't.

Yet he digressed.

It was like the skater had walled up all his joy and enthusiasm during their stupid fight and the moment it was resolved the dam burst and showered them all with this gigantic backlash of pent-up jubilation. It _should_ have made Hunter sick to his stomach. Now Shane was impossibly cheerful, because they were all good, and Hunter knowing he was the cause of it…he didn't know how it made him feel. He had made Shane sad, horribly morose and then he made him happy. Indescribably happy. _Him_. Hunter Bradley was the sole source of Shane's rejuvenation.

And there was also the little fact that _now_ Shane would smile at him in this stupidly _nice_ way, undeniably genuine with how glad he was that things had been resolved, and Hunter wanted to hate him for how good it made the crimson ranger feel. As though he was important. Special, would be the word Blake would use.

But Hunter's not Blake, and even though he'd promised not to be such an incompetent imbecile in the future there were still some lines he couldn't cross.

Too close. It was too close to him (stupid, when talking about Shane, but there it was). So now Shane kept sending him these smiles and touching him, taking physical liberties (because it was emotional boundaries or physical ones and Hunter's pretty much maxed out his card at this point) and gradually working them back into regular, snarky-friend condition. They couldn't recapture what they once had, it wasn't there anymore, but they were building back up to something better. Best friends, according to Dustin's book which was…fair enough. It wasn't impossible for Shane to be Hunter's best friend. _Best-est_, best friend. Best friend with one of them incredibly, very much pathetically attracted to the other one…and terrible at expressing himself…and demonstrates his love by being a jackass. That was what they were. Lucky Shane.

He really won the lottery on that one.

And since he was being so in touch with his complex emotional workings Hunter could go ahead and admit that the only reason he had wanted to keep Shane away was because it was easier. You know, emotionally, since that was the name of the game. When Shane wasn't happy, when he wasn't close, Hunter didn't think about any possibilities, didn't get hopeful, didn't…want to try things. Like hugging, for instance. More like holding. Hugging was okay (and by that he meant stupendous) but _this_ guy was pro-holding. But that was reserved for special situations only because Shane was hetero (which he had to remind himself over and _over_) and didn't do boy touching (unless it was Cam or Dustin or now _him_) so Hunter was just going to have to suck it up until he could get his next hit.

Yeah, his deepest, darkest secret was that he was a hug-junkie. Only if they were from Shane but still, he wasn't sure if that qualification made it any better.

It wasn't all bad, and by bad he meant it wasn't as awkward as it could be. Suave, sarcastic Hunter was finally back with an audience that actually appreciated his jokes, and it was nice to have someone other than Tori to mock Blake with. Well, as much as Shane ever did mocking. He was too nice to allow Hunter to get far. And their "time apart" has allowed for new stories to exchange, easy familiar ground, which eventually lead to the bolder critiques of each other's battle strategies which lead to mock sparing which lead to impromptu, wonderfully terrible wrestling matches on the ground.

If he didn't know any better he would think that Shane was doing half this shit on purpose. Luckily Hunter had developed a mantra to help combat these uncontrolled influxes of hope. And libido.

That one was getting tougher to fight.

Christmas Eve found the team gathered at Ninja Ops, skirmishes with Lothor and other conflicts having postponed decorating, as suggested by Dustin. Originally Hunter had thought it was a waste of time, he and Blake hadn't decorated for a Christmas since…well, since his parents, and if it would only be relevant for a day and a half what was the point?

But then Tori gave him the _"I'll smack you down, I swear if you so much as make a displeased face"_ look and Blake had that low-key happy enthusiasm that usually meant he was extremely excited about it but didn't want to upset Hunter, so the blond conceded. He had ruined pie-day anyway; the least he could do was string up some garlands in the tv room.

Decorations were a team effort, and by that he meant Tori and Dustin had it covered. The yellow ranger apparently had a surplus of tinsel and ornaments and Tori had sifted through the thrift shops for the best "swag" as Cyber Cam so eloquently put it. Their efforts brought them an old but fairly decent artificial tree, strings of lights with an occasional missing bulb (though it didn't break the circuit, thank God), garland, candles, ornaments and even a Christmas themed train set. Hunter hadn't known those existed. Wasn't sure why they had gotten it but Tori had started to get that look again and he had wisely retreated elsewhere. Got it, he was on probation. She did _not_ want any repeat incidents. Hunter could respect that.

He was in the middle of hanging another piece of garland around the top perimeter of the room, minding his own business, when his hand came in contact with…_it_. Hand-sized so not another string of garland but clearly too shrub-like to be considered an ornament. He whipped it out for a closer inspection to find one of the most dreaded pieces of Christmas-time decoration.

Mistletoe.

His first instinct was to shove it back into the box, but if he did someone with less common sense could come upon it and decide to hang it up to get "in the spirit" of things, and that could lead to many awkward moments. Hunter knew that he would probably get stuck under it with Shane no less than five times if lady luck had her way. Man he _hated_ that bitch.

So he couldn't put it back and he couldn't hang it up so his next choice of action was to shove it in his pocket and call it a day. Unfortunately the hand on his shoulder startled him enough to hurl the thing as far as possible because he knew that grip, all to well.

Shane looked at him curiously, and Hunter felt his eye twitch from the effort to not look at where the damn mistletoe had gone.

"Are you okay?" He asked, familiar Boy Scout, Superman, epi-concern back and applied to Hunter, and he wanted to say _yes_ and he wanted to hug him (for being a BoyScout, Superman of epi-concern) but his mental-train-wreck-to-mouth communication was cut off by a bewildered shout from Blake.

The younger Bradley's cheek was red from the impact, and he rubbed it sorely, other hand clutching the mistletoe. "Hunter, what the hell?"

The navy ranger held it up to inspect it, not aware of Hunter's missile of choice, and as though it could not be more perfectly timed Tori leaned in and kissed his cheek just as his eyes widened in acknowledgement. Of course, unsatisfied with a peck Blake continued to hold the decoration up and went in for a real kiss.

Thinking he had planned it Shane clasped the side of Hunter's arm, eyes approving, and Hunter smiled back, trying not to feel bitter about the maybe-kisses that would never be voluntarily given.

Merry fricking, Christmas.

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To Blake's credit, Tori had been the one to snag the mistletoe and hang it up, not him, though Hunter couldn't help but notice that he didn't try too terribly hard to put up a fight when she took it. If Hunter wasn't on her bad side he would've taken it and burned it. He didn't care _how_ long it took his brother to ask her out, mistletoe was freaking _deadly_.

He would eat those words two hours later, when he had finally managed to lose track of Shane long enough to get trapped under that stupid piece of greenery with him and receive a warm laugh and a kiss of the cheek.

Yeah, a cheek kiss. From _Shane_.

He would like to note that the apocalypse did _not_ arrive immediately after.

Whether it was the spirit of the season or Shane's gratefulness for the restoration of their friendship, Hunter didn't know. He only knew that their future accidental run-ins under that thing had increased exponentially.

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Cam had allowed for the decorations to stay up for a week before insisting they be taken down before they got distracted with attacks and they stayed up until February. Shane could understand his reasoning, and relented easily. He made sure he was the one who took down the mistletoe, tucking it away in his pocket for…hell, he's not sure why. Commemorative purposes, maybe. He had kissed Hunter like, five times and not _once_ gotten punched in the face. He knew the blond was just humoring him, but still.

Later he would be too busy to see Hunter frown at the vacant spot in the doorway, nor the almost disappointed sigh that followed it.

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Hunter ended up getting Shane a complete new set of safety gear for Christmas. He's talking the whole deal, elbow pads, knee pads, wrist guards, helmet…

Okay, he had chickened out on the helmet. He hadn't wanted to go overboard, but his gift was well received anyway and he didn't have to explain that the reason behind it was that Shane's old gear was looking a bit worn, and he loved him too much to allow the risk of them failing on him.

Safety first, right?

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Shane hadn't been focused on their sparing, too distracted by the determined look on Hunter's face and how it was affecting him…differently than all previous viewings of this _exact_ same look. This hadn't been a problem before. Not just with Hunter, or guys, just, in general. Hormones had never been this bad. Teenage karma coming back to bite him in the ass. Figured.

So he hadn't been paying _that_ much attention to the actual sparing which would explain the inevitable slip up which lead to the subsequent stumble, and soon he was leaning against Hunter's chest, the crimson ranger steadying him while the majority of their torsos maintained close physical contact. He wasn't sure what to say, should he thank him? He looked up to say something, he didn't remember, and was caught. Yeah, as stupid as that sounded and he _hated_ how freaking stupid it sounded because it was one of the worst, weakest most _awful_ explanations but that was the only way to describe it. His eyes were close to Shane's eyes and staring and _god_ it was like one of Tori's crappy romance novels, except it was real and now he couldn't make fun of them for how unrealistic they were and he _loved_ making fun of them and-

And then Hunter was pushing him back to his feet, gently, turning his eyes to the side and already walking out of the dojo, immediately talking to fill up the silence. Did Shane want pizza? They should get pizza. Pizza_ now_ sounded like the best idea ever.

Shane trailed after him, quietly, and mused over the sudden change from determined to mildly frantic.

Maybe there was more to their relationship than he thought.

…_uh_, seriously, his mind was becoming the narration to the _worst_ romantic comedy _ever_.

But it could be worse.

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They sat in uncomfortable silence for a bit, Hunter at least _trying_ to look like he was paying attention to the television in front of him. That's what they had come in here to do. To go about their normal routine so they could just subconsciously enforce that the current predicament of their red ranger was not something to be all that worried about.

That didn't mean he wasn't, or that Shane wasn't, but you know, they could at least pretend.

When the uneasy shuffling started up again from the mound of pillows at his side, Hunter decided to break their unspoken rule and address the elephant in the room.

"It could be worse," he offered, glancing down with what he hoped was a look of sympathy.

Two accusing guinea pig eyes stared back at him, slightly wounded that he would suggest such a thing and the nice-Hunter he had been going for was immediately dropped in favor of his more blunt way of addressing things.

"Hey man, Sensei's been stuck like that for months, you can suck it up for a few hours until Cam fixes it."

When he looked back down the guinea pig was playing with the edge of his tiny sleeve, properly abashed.

It sighed, shaking its tiny guinea pig head. "I know."

Cool. Great, glad they got through that one.

Knowing that Shane had to be at least a little torn up on the inside Hunter reached down and gently patted the top of his head. It was allowed, and then Shane hopped atop his arm, climbing up until he reached the crimson ranger's shoulder and settling down there, either to get a better view or to make Hunter's life hell. Or both. He was good at multi-tasking.

On a scale of how random their week-to-week activities tended to be Shane and Sensei switching bodies was definitely ranking near the top of the list as far as spontaneity and inconvenience went. It wasn't even Lothor inflicted this time, it was Cam. Yeah, that guy, who was supposed to prevent these kinds of things from _happening_. It was totally his fault.

Stupid Cam, wanting his dad to be human so he could hug him and be normal again.

…okay, so even Hunter could admit it wasn't an entirely unreasonable desire, but the moment Shane had gotten caught in the crossfire his ability to think objectively was compromised. Now all he could think was what would happen if Cam couldn't switch them back. What if Shane was stuck like this? Hunter would stick by him, no question, keep him company and hang out with him, but it wasn't fair for Sensei to keep a body that wasn't his. He had his shot; Shane deserved to live his life in his own _god damn_ _body_.

So he repeats, stupid Cam.

A cough jolted him out of this unpleasant train of thought, and he glanced out of the corner of his eye to see Shane looking at him in consideration. Studious, like he was just catching on to something Hunter hadn't wanted him to see.

Damn it, he was supposed to be playing it cool.

Hunter waited, fighting the urge to tense up.

"You've got a big head," Shane finally allowed, not _quite_ an innocent observation. Joking, like old, human Shane.

The tension that wasn't as nonexistent as it should have been disappeared and Hunter inwardly smiled.

Shane was starting to get out of his funk.

Playing along, he poked the side of the rodent's head, careful not to push too hard. "And you've got a stupid hat."

There was an indignant huff as his finger was batted away. "It's a status symbol," Guinea-Shane explained to him, "didn't Sensei Omino have one?"

He did, but that wasn't relevant to the goal Hunter wanted to achieve.

He wanted Shane to feel better.

Huh, it was weird how much easier goals were to achieve when you acknowledged them.

The blond scoffed, being sure to turn his head away from Shane. "Please," he replied sarcastically, "he wouldn't be caught dead in one of those."

The quiet laugh Hunter got in return was more satisfying than anything else he had done that, and that included reaming out Cam.

Content, Shane began to settle himself in, arranging Hunter's hair as a cushion. "I thought it was universally unanimous that clothes on small furry animals equaled cuteness."

On Sensei, no, but on Shane…

"Alright Shane," Hunter replied, coy and relaxed and _not_ obsessively aware of how close Shane was to his face, because he was still a guinea pig and that would be weird, "if it will please your ego, you're cute." He paused and stared at the reflection in the TV, conscious not to disrupt Shane's perch. "Happy?"

In the glass Shane waved at him before curling into the side of his face. "Thrilled."

This was a sentiment Hunter could return.

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It was a kind of weird day.

Dustin flopped his head lazily to the side, mumbling incoherently before trying to make a flailing gesture with his arm, only managing to smack Shane in the side of the head. First space pollen, and now space dust. Or space aerosol drugs, or whatever fancy term Cam had used for it. Point was that Dustin was drugged out of his mind and now it was up to him and Hunter to drag the mobility-challenged ranger into bed while Cam started whipping up a cure.

From the yellow ranger's other side Hunter made an annoyed sound, met with a similar assault from Dustin's wandering fingers. "I like you Dustin but I swear to God if you smack me in the face _one more time_…"

Shane frowned, and then immediately tried to hide it by readjusting his grip on his best friend, trying to ignore the sudden flare of jealousy. Sure, Hunter had no problems with being close to Dustin, but once he figured out Shane cared about him it was two weeks of silent treatment.

Though if he was going to complain about that he might as well complain about their not being air in space, or his brother's tendency to be a dick, or the fact that Dustin was more susceptible to evil-space-irritants than the rest of them. It was an unfortunate fact of life, expecting it to be fair was stupid.

As though reading his mind Dustin chose that exact moment to collapse all his weight on the red ranger, making him stumble into the wall briefly before Hunter caught on and helped them both upright. Dustin made a noncommittal sound and stared at the ceiling with wide eyes.

Hunter sighed and motioned for them to keep going, readjusting his hold on Dustin's shoulder. "And no more of that either," he lectured, as though Dustin could hear him. Shane wondered if the warning was because the blond actually cared if Shane got smacked into walls or if talking just made him feel better.

He was over thinking this.

"Well," Hunter grunted, balancing Dustin's weight on his right side as he opened the door to Cam's room, "at least it isn't you this time."

Had they not been so close to their destination Shane would have stopped right there, thoroughly shocked at how easy Hunter had admitted it. Yeah there were a lot of reasons to be glad Shane hadn't gotten hit from a team standpoint, he was the leader, helped keep everyone cool and together in battle, so it wasn't like this should go towards his head or anything.

Pushing those thoughts aside, Shane continued the conversation, trying to keep up the light banter.

He wracked his mind for the last big status ailment suffered by the team. "The guinea pig thing happened to both of us."

Hunter doesn't immediately respond as they navigated Dustin to the bed, difficult as the yellow ranger kept jerking at random intervals, but eventually they just leaned him over the bed and let go, letting gravity do the rest of the work. It was mostly effective, getting the majority of his top half on, and Shane and Hunter quickly pushed his legs onto the mattress before he could fall off.

There, mission accomplished.

Hunter's the one who broke their moment of silence as they appreciated their work.

"What I meant," he began in his hushed, serious tone he reserved for special occasions, "was that I'm glad it wasn't you."

Shane's not entirely sure how to respond, because Hunter doesn't know how much it meant to hear that, and he doesn't want to lose him again, so he just smiles and says, "Don't let Cam hear that."

Hunter gave him a meaningful, yet annoyed look that clearly said that wasn't what he meant and Shane knew it, and the red ranger better not make him spell it out because it shouldn't be necessary. Specific, but Shane's pretty sure that was an accurate interpretation. There was a lot of substance in that look. Well, the look conveyed the first part. The sigh followed by a fierce hug expressed the second.

Shane gratefully relaxed into it.

Their perfect little moment was ruined when in an epic show of drugged-out strength Dustin managed to yank Shane onto the bed which inevitably brought Hunter down with him. Shane was too surprised to let out more than an undignified squawk as a very unapologetic Dustin curled around his side, using the red ranger as his personal body-warmer. He muttered quietly under his breath and properly latched himself to Shane, leaving the skater with no room to retreat. Beside him Hunter laughed, too entertained by the antics of drugged-out Dustin to care about how he was practically on top of Shane.

"Sucks to be you," he taunted, patting the leader's chest sympathetically as he moved to get up, leaving Shane trapped with Dustin.

"You're leaving me alone?"

He tried not to sound as disappointed as he felt, but he should have figured Hunter hadn't had his heart set on leaving. The crimson ranger immediately settled down next to him, gesturing impatiently for him to scoot over while he got comfortable.

Three guys in one bed, didn't leave a lot of wiggle room.

He would appreciate this more later.

"Hey," Hunter began cheerfully, breaking Shane out of his thoughts, "this is the bed you _'slept with'_ Cam in."

The red ranger rolled his eyes, "Shut up."

God, he would never live that down would he.

The blond winked and grinned at him smugly, "You should come to my place some time."

There was something dangerously mischievous in that tone, something Shane was immensely glad for because it kept him from taking Hunter seriously, from envisioning that possibility.

"Seriously," Hunter continued, Cheshire smile in place, "my bed is _so lonely_." He followed this up with a suggestive eyebrow wiggle, and Shane could only hope that his bark of laughter could account for the heat rising to his face.

He tilted his head back and stared at the far wall, keeping Hunter from getting a good look at him. "You have Blake, don't you?"

Hunter scoffed dramatically, and Shane knew that that _there_, _that_ goofy Hunter was just for him. No one else had privilege to that.

_That's_ what he had been fighting for.

The crimson ranger's head rolled against his shoulder, settling in more comfortably than he ever had before. This was better, much better than what they previously had. It was like jumping up fifty levels without having to go through all the hard work. Not to say he hadn't freaking _brawled_ to get to this point.

Patience _was_ a virtue.

"Yeah," Hunter replied casually, using that half-bored, half-playful tone as he brushed away Dustin's twitching fingers, "but not in my _bed_."

Shane laughed again, brushing a hand through Dustin's hair, "Hey, what you do is your own business."

He didn't see the scowl but he knew it was there, almost immediately followed by a flick to the head that expressed Hunter wasn't amused and Shane laughed again, louder. It only increased when Dustin decided that Shane wasn't enough for him and latched onto the front of Hunter's ninja suit, pulling him down so that he too was draped over Shane.

Outwardly Shane laughed and gave Hunter sympathizing looks. Inwardly he promised to buy Dustin as much ice cream as his heart desired the moment he got better.

There was a frustrated sigh that Shane could only hope was for appearances sake before Hunter adjusted to Dustin's hold, draping an arm across Shane's waist like it was just the easiest freaking thing in the world. Like they hadn't worked so hard just to get here. With Shane not seeing and Hunter silently fighting and the lack of awareness and the fear and the final acceptance, like they hadn't had to go through all _that_ just to get here.

But here they got, and it was just as easy as _that_.

Life was about as hard as you made it.

"Don't get used to this," Hunter warned, not really meaning it, which was good because Shane couldn't find a way _not_ to. They'd simply come too far.

This was victory.

And it couldn't go much uphill from here.

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Hell.

Hand basket.

You get the metaphor.

It had been a disaster, far worse than the time with the dragon (because at least then Hunter could still _see_ Shane, knew that even though they couldn't talk he was there, and alive, and breathing) and the crimson ranger had managed to pull a miracle out of thin air and repress all the anxiety and tension and worry he had down to lead his little "team" (Tori) towards victory while abandoned plant facility number eight was falling to pieces around him. There had been a plan. They had stuck to that plan for about three seconds and then the world went blindingly white and Hunter got ripped into pieces. It felt like he was being pulled apart agonizingly slow down to his smallest fricking _membrane_ and then shoved back together, all in the matter of a second. A teleporting guy. Awesome. A _painful_ teleporting guy who had already separated them and to add to that glorious little pile of _sunshine_ their coms were down. Because a plan couldn't properly go to shit without _that_ little ingredient. So far Hunter had only managed to locate Tori but there was only one monster and they were the only ones fighting him so where was everyone else? Had he launched Blake into space? Dustin into the ocean? Into walls, phased into buildings? Where the hell were they?

Hunter had gotten hit by that magic beam again just as Cam made his dynamic entrance. Good, because Tori wouldn't be left alone, but then _ow, damn_, that _hurt_ and then he was by some cliffs, Dustin and Blake occupied with what was apparently a second monster.

The second monster is a dramatic improvement in the way that he only wanted to throw rocks at them, but also majorly sucked because he was very good at _aiming_. Even between the three of them it was difficult to get close enough to do any damage and they're all too busy using their elemental attacks on the boulder's flying towards their _faces_ to bother aiming at the monster.

Hunter hadn't even noticed falling into it, hadn't figured it out because when Blake wanted to be crafty he was a pro, but the navy ranger had somehow managed to pull decoy duty so that Dustin and Hunter could get in close. Smart because Hunter's weapon was the strongest and Dustin could give it a taste of it's own medicine, but infuriating because the rocks had been difficult to dodge when the focus had been equally distributed between the three of them so he couldn't stand a chance in hell _now…_

Hunter should have been paying more attention, but the fact that Shane was still unaccounted for was lingering in the back of his mind, so he didn't pick up on it until Blake was on the verge of become meat pudding, the strain catching up to him, and big brother mode kicked into gear. Dustin was the most agile anyway, leave him to sneak in close, Blake and Hunter would be the decoys.

He had never been so desperate to have rocks flying towards his face, but he and Blake managed, _together_. A rough but inevitable victory, in the distance he could see Dustin sneaking up behind rock monster, serving up a smack down earth ninja style.

It launched off one more boulder in protest, as though rebelling against the injustice of it all, but as a celebration of its incompetence the projectile missed all of them, speedily rolling towards the edge of the cliff, off to its watery grave. Hunter clapped Blake on the side of the arm, laughing with the other two rangers as the appreciated their brief moment of rest.

That was a satisfying victory.

He should have known, he should have freaking _known_ that the two monsters had some kind of connection, that even if they were stupid and obnoxious they weren't _that_…but it had seemed like such a clean win for them, it had been reasonable to assume...

There's a bright light, a blinding flicker at the edge of the cliff and suddenly Shane's _there_, standing numb while he waits for the agony to pass and the rock bowls into him, so fast Hunter would have missed it if he wasn't intoned to all things Shane, and then the red ranger and the boulder are gone, poof, like a leaf on the wind.

Part of Hunter goes with them.

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Endnotes:

So…not the ending! Yeah, had you guys fooled with that one, didn't I? Maybe. Perhaps.

Anyway, first and foremost all credit goes to Rogue Ranger for coming up with the "Life's about as hard as you make it line" because it was too brilliant not to be used. Also, mad props to ValkyrieNyght for insisting this chapter be written. She also came up with the idea for a cliffhanger so if you're going to be throwing tomatoes…*motions in her direction*

Okay, show of hands, who saw that ending coming from a mile away? Yeah, don't really do subtle (as though you, the people who have sat through fifty chapters, haven't figured that out yet (By the way I love you guys, lots and lots and _lots_)).

Return of the double parenthesis, just for Valkyrie.

Alright, a good chunk of this was written during my test week (only one more next week and I'm done!), but I was so close I decided to write anyway, so if it's a little wonky there's the reason why. And (like some others) fanfiction dot net hasn't been very keen on letting me log in this week, so I figured I'd post this _now_ before it got finicky again.

Much love to everyone who reviewed last chapter. Have I mentioned you guys are awesome, a-cuz you _are_. Don't forget it, everyday. Rogue Ranger, Valkyrie, and agd888. The coolest of cats.

Once again, no beta, so if there are any train wrecks I'd appreciate a PM.

Until next time.


	51. Follow Your Heart

Chapter 51

Follow Your Heart

I don't own Urinetown.

Also, _therewillbealotof__**this**_-

And repetition and repetition and repetition.

Just a heads up.

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Hunter was barely aware of everything that happened after that. It was like watching a power point slideshow, just a soundless flash of an image before the next one was presented, disjointed, no flow, no immersion, nothing. He felt detached, as though he were watching his body from some observation deck far, far away as it ran through the motions. Dustin and Blake were dismissed to help with the zord battle, the two monsters grown and mauling the Samurai megazord. If there were protests he didn't remember them, just one moment there was panic yelling and the next he was scaling down the side of a cliff, searching for that flash of red and hoping there wouldn't be any crimson staining it.

He had thought he was numb before he met the other rangers, that the world couldn't affect him but he was dead wrong. That was nothing, _nothing_ compared to those few minutes, weighing like centuries, he spent desperately looking for Shane. He couldn't hear anything; he couldn't feel anything, just him. Just his breathing and his heart pounding so much harder than-

If he were in a much more gathered frame of mind he would have noted he was freaking out, if that term could do it justice, that there was this looming fear for the worst, that this could mean no Shane, no Shane again _ever_ and he couldn't handle there _not_ being Shane, that couldn't be allowed, there had to be some rules and he couldn't do it, he wouldn't be able to do it without-

There. There, and there and _there_ he was, floating, unmorphed near the base of the cliff, _rocks_-

Hunter half-swam/ran/streaked he wasn't sure, he just got over to Shane in a heartbeat, just because he found him didn't mean everything was okay, didn't mean he was _alive_ and he wasn't morphed and when had that happened? If it happened when he hit the water he would be fine but if it happened when he got hit by the rock then he could be so much less than fine and Hunter didn't want him to be less than-

He scooped up the red ranger as gently as he could but it was still pathetic, jerky with twitching arms, but nothing appeared to be broken. Shane wasn't conscious but he was breathing, a gift, and Hunter sped off to Ninja Ops before he could hesitate any longer, not looking at the body in his arms.

It was just him and the weight of another, racing through the unyielding silence.

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Hunter had Shane on one of Cam's emergency cots in three seconds flat, and he's vaguely aware of Sensei and the water they were dripping all over the floor but both were inconsequential to the pressing needs of the moment. He was torn, to-do list stacking up into a mish-mashed pile of demands. He needed to check for more injuries, he needed to get Shane dry and redressed in new clothes, he needed…

Cyber Cam. Cyber Cam, bless whatever kindness there was out there in the universe for that stupidly dressed, moronically speaking, super hologram. He took over scanning, Sensei must have recruited him after Hunter's initial brush-off, and once the red ranger was cleared for no neck or spinal injuries Hunter got to work drying him.

He had been too shaken up to appreciate it, too aware of the circumstances that had brought them to this point and all he could see was an endless loop of the rock colliding with Shane's body, Shane falling over the cliff, Shane lying still in the crashing waters, rinse, repeat, always taunting his inability to stop it.

By the time the others got back Shane was on a new, dry bed in fresh clothes and Hunter was already half-done wrapping up his ankle, the only thing that appeared to have suffered any major damage aside from a couple of nasty bruises. There was fawning and questions (all directed at Cyber Cam because Hunter didn't have time for them) and when Tori attempted to take over his self-appointed task Hunter's pretty sure he growled at her, but he's not completely sure and he doesn't really care anyway.

Cam confirmed Cyber Cam's findings and one-by-one they begin to leave the room, too freaking slow in Hunter's opinion. Dustin and Tori were the last to leave, with Blake sending a concerned look before giving up just before them. There were probably more words, call them when he woke up, don't hesitate, take could care of him,_ blah-blah-blah-blah-blah_, and then it's just them. Just him and the guy who came close to dying and even though everything's supposedly okay the tension that had seemed to permanently reside itself in Hunter's chest wasn't going to go away until he saw those eyes open.

And if they didn't…

Thinking about that hurts about as much as falling off of the cliff must have so Hunter doesn't, he just waited and waited and waited.

No thinking allowed.

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The hypothetical, gathered Hunter from before, who didn't and probably could never exist in the situation, would have probably thought that the current-Hunter had once more taken over-reacting to it's finest extreme because it doesn't take Shane but twelve minutes to wake up and join the land of the living again.

It's slow at first, a quiet moan while the red ranger furrowed his brows uncomfortably, like his head hurt and he tried to sit up but Hunter put a preventative hand against his chest. The skater complied and moaned again, reaching up to rub the side of his head.

"_Ugh…_did we win?"

It's an innocent question. A reasonable request, after all winning _was_ a very important part of their job. Vital to the citizens of Blue Bay Harbor's survival.

These are things Hunter would pay attention to later.

He wasn't sure what he had wanted Shane to say, if there had been a right thing to say at all, but instead of being relieved that Shane wasn't brain damaged or had amnesia and that he was awake and alive and _not_ dead, and functioning, and _normal_, that growing, permanent, thriving tension burst into these pouring waves of _mad_, and _anger_ and _hurt _came out. Which was quickly followed by stupid, emotional Hunter deciding that he would throw out whatever words he felt like instead of the ones that actually mattered, like _"I'm glad you're safe",_ and _"I'm glad your head's still attached to your body"_ and _"Promise me you won't do that again"_ and all the things he actually _wanted_ to say.

Instead of any of that, or hugging him, Hunter went into his old standby, glaring at the injured red ranger. "You're an asshole"

Shane was still out of it so he probably assumed this was just part of Hunter's witty banter. He smiled contently, eyes still closed as he waved absently in Hunter's direction. "I missed you too."

For a guy whose safety he wanted to ensure Hunter _really_ wanted to wring Shane's neck right about now. His frown deepened, shifting to the front of the chair he had acquired for waiting as he attempted to glare the red ranger into nothingness.

He wasn't allowed to be happy right now, he had to feel jumbled and shaken and…

_Scared_.

Yeah…that, he needed to feel that. If Hunter had to put up with all that crap the least Shane could do was freaking _take_ _him seriously_.

"You could have died," he informed Shane, impressed by how he had managed to refrain from yelling. He really wanted to yell but the part of him that liked Shane and actually _felt_ like cooperating with him reminded Hunter that the injured lug could have a headache.

Yeah, and it would be a lot worse after Hunter _punched_ him.

Shane was slowly becoming more aware of the conversation, getting a feel for Hunter's tone, the authenticity of his anger. He began to sit up and Hunter doesn't bother to stop him this time. He looked the crimson ranger in the eye, first time since before the fall and calmly replied, "We could die a lot of times."

And it's true, _so true_, and then they're back at the cliffs again but this time Hunter sees it all, Shane getting hit, and Shane falling, Shane's body ricocheting off the cliff side, unnatural contortions, breaking, _snapping_, hitting the water and drowning, no more Shane, no more Shane, no more Shane-

Hunter's grip tightened against the side of his chair, and he's pretty sure it broke, and he bit out through gritted teeth, "You're. An. _Ass_."

There's more studying from Shane, contemplating the broken chair before he turned his frown to Hunter, finally getting serious.

Good. Fantastic. About _freaking_ _**time**_.

He sighed, "You're doing that thing were you're being unreasonable again."

_Oh, you mean, existing?_

Because pretty much everything that concerned Shane for Hunter requires overreacting and being unreasonable. It just is because it's just _this_. All these stupid emotions that don't do _anything_ but Shane almost died and he didn't _care_, he almost left, he could be _gone_ and he didn't _care_-

But should he really? They _had_ to do this so what was one brush with death compared to another? Did it even matter in the grand scheme of things?

Hunter pushed these thoughts aside as the anger intensified. "I'm _allowed_ to be unreasonable," he exclaimed, even though he's _not_ and he pulled at hair irritably. When had that become one of his bad habits? He hadn't always done that. But he hadn't always done _this_ and- "You can't keep pulling this crap, you're the leader-"

Shane would have none of it, and nipped Hunter's tirade in the bud. "It's my job to look after my teammates-"

Hunter glared, standing now because he just couldn't do this sitting, he couldn't, and the not-yelling thing got thrown out the window. "How're you supposed to do that if you get smashed into pieces?"

He's smashed then falls then splats and then there's no more Shane and no more-

And now Shane's beginning to get into the fight, abandoning his usual voice of reason and giving into irritation (well isn't that just _dandy_), "What are you saying, that I should have just let Tori get hit?"

Hunter laughed because it figured, it figured that Shane would have taken a blow for his friends because that's who he is, that he would put himself on the line before any of them ever had to and that _hurts_ because then he could be-

And even though it's wrong Hunter grabbed onto that logic, even though it's about as far from reasonable as you could get.

"Yes," he spat out irritably, "because she's not _you_!" He turned away before Shane could get a good look at his face and began rambling, spilling out words to stop the jittering on the inside, and all he could see was Shane tumbling over the cliff over and over again. Hit. Fall. Splat. Blood. No more Shane. No more Shane. _No more Shane_.

He grasped onto the side of his head, "We need _you_, not Tori;" he'd apologize to her later but _he_, not we, but he couldn't say he, needed Shane- "We need _you_ to stay safe and sound from your suicidal tendencies for as long as possible." It was overly harsh but he hoped it was effective; he couldn't _not_ be harsh and leave the chance that this could happen again. "And I know," he began, choking a little as he attempted to wind it down, moving into bitingly sarcastic as opposed to this never-ending stream of anger he's been spewing, "it'll be really freaking tempting but you know what, you just can't, I forbid it, you just _can't_."

He ran out of words and stopped, feeling like that weight he's been carrying around just slams into his chest, mocking, and he was spent. It was pointless. It was just another battle he was fighting that wouldn't matter, just another expenditure of emotion that amounted to nothing in the end.

Nothing.

And _damn_, did that hurt.

"Just…" when he looked up whatever words he had dried up in his mouth because Shane's moved beyond being angry to being this whole new level of surprised and confused, like Hunter had presented him with the key to the universe when all he had asked for was the weather, and Hunter was too pissed and scared, _scared_ was the word for it, to be able to formulate a response to it. To justify himself.

He just wanted to hug him. He just wanted to hug him, and smack him for being _him_ and hate him for not-caring about what he did to him, what he made Hunter feel, he hated-

His eyes were wet, he distantly noted. No tears, just wet. Not important, it wasn't, like he wasn't, and damn he did _not_ just think that, _getthehellover__**yourself-**_

Hunter had never thought it would come to this. That he would be reduced to this shaken, scared, overprotective, over-dependent piece of human being that relied _so_ heavily on this one guy- he hadn't even _liked_ Shane all that much in the beginning. When had that changed? Why couldn't he go back in time and punch himself in the face because it was _never_ going to happen, it was just going to be _this_, _**forever**_, and Shane wasn't going to care, as well he should and-

He's being pulled down, Shane's hand around his wrist giving a gentle tug until he's perched on the edge of that stupid cot and Hunter knew that this was it, he had finally done it, this was the last straw, how _dare_ he say Tori was less important than-

And then he's being hugged, sort of, or held because he broke the special occasion glass and he had almost settled into it before Shane changed his mind, and then he's in Shane's lap, but _that _shouldn't fly because he's not _Cam_ and he's not a man-whore and he's not _that_ desperate and then-

And then that endless loop of Shane death and worry and fear and anger and _hatesorrowfearanxietyscared_ screeched to an abrupt halt and evaporated because then there's this _kiss_. And Shane is _there_, kissing _him_, and they're posed like some awful, horribly clichéd story but Hunter didn't care because Shane-

_Iskissinghim**rightnow**and-_

It's warm, and insistent and there are too many adjectives that are coming to mind for Hunter to feel comfortable with describing because holy _shit_ he really _had_ become some teenage girl, but he was a teenage girl who got Shane and he better not freaking be doing this out of pity or he will _kill him-_

Hunter deepened the kiss as quickly as possible, because screw it if this was the love-potion coming back for a short sneak attack or delirium or a concussion because Hunter doesn't _care_, but then Shane's laughing at his enthusiasm and he pulled back, glaring, because that won't_ fricking do_.

Of course this only served to make Shane laugh harder and poke the side of his face playfully. And god, _damn_ did Hunter want to kill him again.

Nope. Not pity or a love potion. This was legit.

And because Shane knew, like Hunter knew, like Hunter had demonstrated as wonderfully and extensively as possible, that the crimson ranger was a failure at communicating the darker teen just smiled at him, _so easy,_ and-

"I love you too," he whispered, because that moment couldn't get anymore goo-filled or pathetic and Hunter wanted to say something desperately snarky but he couldn't find the words, he doesn't know how to say it but it figured, it figured, it figured-

Of course Shane would love him.

_Of_ course. Because there was no other reason this person, this kind, overly-cheerful, exuberant _person_ would be this stupidly patient for _him_. Because him loving Hunter made for happy endings. Because Shane was too good not to see past his bullshit to-

What? The warm marshmallow center?

_Ugh…_maybe Hunter was the one who hit his head. Maybe this was a hallucination, and -

"Hunter."

It's Shane again, quiet, pulling him back into the real world and giving him that look that says that he was wanted, _here_, not in his head, because Shane _knew_ him enough to know he would be stuck in over-panic land _forever_ if left to his own devices.

And even if he didn't have to say it, and this _might_ just be some too-good-to-be-true illusion…

"I love you," he whispered, because it wasn't epic soap opera confession time if he didn't. Whisper, not saying it.

He had wanted to say that for far longer than he could remember.

…okay, so it was like a few months, but still.

The smile he received in return was a snapshot he would keep forever, his alone, and Hunter vowed that he would do whatever it took to bring it back as many times as possible, and to keep Shane safe so he could always share it with him. He was screwed, he knew that. Welcomed it, even. Hell, he even had the decency to take Shane down with him with his…this-ness. But if the other oaf was stupid enough to let him in, and if Hunter was lucky enough to _get_ him…

They would do so much more than make the best of it.

_Damn_, he hoped he wasn't dreaming, because it couldn't be this easy, it just couldn't, he couldn't be this fortuitous or this lucky or-

"Hunter," and Shane's back again, just in time and smiling knowingly, and Hunter wondered why he was still on the other's lap. He wasn't doing a very good job of asserting his authority.

And…nope, he could not find the will to move.

Damn Shane's snuggly goodness.

He would have to trade tips with Dustin for future excursions.

The red ranger continued, tone permeated with _smug_. "I would ask if you'd like to go out with me, but I think I already know the answer."

Hunter contemplated swatting at him half-heartedly before opting to snuggle against his chest, because he _could_, and smiled. "Our union will be one to bow mountains."

There's a chuckle, _his_ chuckle, and Shane happily joins in on his description. "Part seas."

Hunter's smile grew.

"Eradicate plagues."

There was a hand in his hair.

"Cultivate nations."

And…_oh,_ _that's _why Dustin liked that so much.

"All others will weep at our glory, too insignificant to even consider being jealous."

Shane halted his massage to look Hunter in the eye, mischievous glint focusing on him. "They will only be able to stare on in wonder."

He felt…giddy. But good giddy, great giddy. Much better than before. That's what Shane did to him. Took what he had, what he _was_ and made it better than before.

He smiled, marveling at how happy that simple action made Shane as he excitedly made his reply. "Silently pondering the possibilities of ever being as cool as we are."

They were lunatics, smiling like crazy, high-as-kites loons and neither of them cared, because they had, they were-

Shane pulled him forward and leaned their foreheads together, unrestrained fondness shining through so bright it almost hurt.

"And when they realize they can't, we'll be there to comfort them." Eskimo kiss was the one with the noses, but Hunter didn't care because he was light and had _this_ and Shane wasn't dead and he was here, he was here, he was here-

Shane continued, the best ending for their screwed up moment, saying exactly what Hunter needed to hear.

His eyes were knowing as he tilted his head, moments away from another kiss.

"Because we are simply too good for them to match us."

And then words don't matter so much anymore. It's just him and him and no more silence and no more tension and no more fear.

Just light and Shane and Shane and Shane and Shane-

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Endnotes:

The end!

…_almost_. We be doing epilogues in here.

The beginning of this chapter was super easy to write. The ending made me nervous, but I think in the end it pulled through, corny and loving and right.

Look at how far our Hunter has come : )

A big thanks to everyone who reviewed last chapter! The real vampire, Valkyrie, Rogue, and agd888. I hoped this chapter lived up to your expectations.

And since we're brushing up against the end, and this _is_ my first story, if there are any pressing holes, storylines, mentionings, plots, just…_things_ that you really wanted to see happen that didn't come into being (taking care of Dustin's phobia, being the prime example) and you would very much like to see them, feel free to PM me. Just because I didn't get them taken care of now doesn't mean I can't do them in a one-shot, or short story that takes place in the same verse.

I can't promise they'll be done immediately, but they _will_ get done.

Now I'm going to post this so I can't change it anymore.

Until next time.


	52. Epilogue

Chapter 52

Epilogue

Dedicated to Rogue Ranger, ValkyrieNyght, and The Tempestuous Muse. Couldn't have done this without any of you guys.

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Endnotes: Sort of.

So here we are, last set of endnotes. I suppose I should put some real effort into them then : )

When I started this story I was in the middle of switching majors, _again_. I was adjusting to a new roommate and had no idea what the hell I was doing. There was just had a blind idea, eventual Dustin/Shane, using the series as a crutch to help me along. I wrote it in the hopes that A) I would find someone else to talk to about Power Rangers without getting laughed at and B) it would entertain _someone_, preferably someone who wasn't me. I am pleased to say that I have achieved both of these things. However, I would _not_ have if it hadn't been for you guys.

That's right, you guys, the ones that actually read these notes.

You could ask most authors and they will tell you that they don't write for the reviews. They write because they have a story and they want to tell it, which is essentially the goal, is it not? To share new ideas and entertain. And while I never expected it, not in a million years, I was fortunate enough to be supported by _you guys_. All your support, all your reviews, hell, even you silent lurkers (who I love just as much) motivated me to deliver better and better chapters. Without you guys I never would have gotten as good as I have and the story would probably be vastly different, and not necessarily in a good way.

I can never thank any of you enough. I will never be able to express how much your feedback has meant, but for one last time, I will at least attempt to.

I would like to deeply thank you guys for reviewing this crazy learning experience of a story. Rogue Ranger: mvp, well earned (reviewer of _every_ _single_chapter), ValkyrieNyght: the ass kicker, a name not given, but taken; lemonlovely: I don't know if you're still there but you were my first, Mathais: (Kai and Mike ftw!), JDTB90: your English is about a million times better than my Spanish, MidnightMoonWarrior: responsible for my very first fanfiction dot net message _ever_, RAWR: I miss your exclamation marks, they were sunshine on a cloudy day, the real vampire: Who I wished hadn't turned off her pm-ing so I could properly express my _lurve_, yinyang69combo, agd888, Ladylove 92, , James Birdsong, RayneLover101, and animenut2003.

Thank you. Thank you, thank you, _thank you_. Thank you for giving me more attention and support than I ever really deserve. It's thanks to you guys I was able to create this story.

Also, my sister was totally jealous of me once she saw y'alls reviews. I told her she should write for Power Rangers. She shook her fist at me.

Good times.

And as it so happens, the timing actually worked out okay. Spring break is sneaking up on me and that means….yes, "Any Moment: Reprise" and "Any Moment B: Reprise" shall be coming shortly. Not drastic rewrites (though the 'A' version will have some added Hunter), more like an edit-down, streamlining the story and cutting off all the extra bits. I won't be taking down this original story though; she is my baby (as screwed up as she is).

Heh, I can't wait to remind my sister about _that_. She'll be so pleased.

I believe that's all I've got, and I'm glad I don't have any music playing because I'd probably be crying, yeah…I'm a sap. So sue me.

It's been an honor and a pleasure, and if you've managed to stick it out this far…

Thank you.

And now what you've all been waiting for.

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Happy endings were a tricky thing.

And Dustin didn't mean it was tricky to achieve them, because yeah, that was super hard too, but just happy endings in themselves were something he had never really gotten behind. Not because they were unrealistic. He had trained at a freaking secret ninja academy; fought evil space ninjas, a dragon, been turned evil, been turned back _good_, gotten space-pollened _one_ too many times, and spent a good amount of his weekends piloting a gigantic robot that was formed out of three _smaller_ robots. In comparison to _that,_ happy endings were pretty much like desert. They could happen, they were nice, they weren't always guaranteed but with a little effort, they were easily attainable.

He understood he had a weird position on it, because if you didn't like happy endings then that must mean that you were all for sad, depressing endings, tragic endings, but no, that's not what he liked either.

There's this saying, something like, "It's not about where you're going, it's about how you get there," which, eventually, Dustin understood. Because hey, walking somewhere vs riding somewhere made a _huge_ difference. But what if you had company for the walk and you didn't get any if you rode? See, it's about priorities. Some people would choose to ride because of speed and efficiency, but Dustin would always choose to walk, so long as he got Cam to be with him.

But that, that wasn't exactly the reason why either.

See the thing was, no matter how you phrased it, happy endings were still just that, endings. They meant that this great journey where you learned and grew and laughed and cried and all…_everything_ of it, your adventure, it meant that it wasn't going to happen anymore. And he got it; he did, because you couldn't start something new, something better, until you finished up with what you had but-

Maybe it was the fear of the unknown. The uncertainty of it.

…Yeah, he wasn't sure why he felt this way. But endings, even happy ones, always made him sad.

He supposed that was just a part of life. Because during those moments, that adventure you had, you're that _one_ person, that old version of yourself and as much as you might want it, old you couldn't handle this new stuff, because he hadn't grown yet. He hadn't adapted to the new world, he didn't belong there. Back in his old time, yeah, he was the Epic Grand Champion of living and learning but here, and _now_, it wasn't for him. Just like new you wasn't meant for back then.

_Ugh…_this was confusing. But there's a point, really.

So here's the grand summary, his _pièce de résistance_ (look at him, rocking out Cam's fancy talk), the conclusion to his ramble. Life was made of moments, and some were good and some were bad, and added up all together it equaled your life. All your experiences were chopped up into individual adventures, each with there specialized beginnings and endings that varied in nature, good or bad, and while you could absolutely just _love_ one moment, eventually you had to let it go. Because if you just focused on that _second_, and keeping everything the same because you were afraid of what would happen if you changed something, because you weren't sure what would happen, you would miss the rest of your life. You wouldn't grow. You'd just be stuck as that one person, and maybe that person kind've sucked. Yeah, he went there. Maybe if that person just let go, and like, _lived_, they would get to become this even greater, even better _thing_ that would encourage other people to grow, and happy things, like really living, would occur.

This was deep, he knew, well, heavy thoughts for _him_, but Dustin couldn't help but be inspired by the sights in front of him. At least, when he didn't feel guilty for viewing them.

Hey, someone _had_ to because it didn't look like Cam, Blake, or Tori were going to start feeling apologetic anytime soon. And they should right? Spying on your friends via camera was _probably_ unethical. And like…unfriendly. Unfriend-like? Something like that. He was pretty sure it was bad.

Not that it stopped him from watching or anything. This was _way_ too good to pass up on. And hey, there wasn't any sound, so it wasn't like, a _total_ invasion of privacy.

He was still cool here, right?

When Shane and Hunter began to engage in…certain activities, very enthusiastically, Cam shut off the monitor (see, there was a good friend) and immediately the rest of the room celebrated, Blake and Dustin exchanging high fives while Cam and Tori hugged, because finally, _finally_ the reds had gotten there. Even Dustin had started to see it near the end too, and he usually sucked at picking these kinds of things up but Hunter-

Yeah, Hunter sucked at hiding his feelings for Shane.

Luckily (but not for the rest of the team, because they were pulling their freaking hair out) it seemed that Shane sucked just as much at noticing them. At least, not until Hunter had started ranting and raving and breaking down and forbidding things. It had looked like there was some mad forbidding going on; but Dustin would have to check notes with Tori later to be sure.

"Finally," Blake sighed, and he was the only one surprised at the head smack that followed, delivered graciously by Tori, and continued to sport a befuddled look while the water ninja gave a sigh of her own and leaned into him, rubbing the side of his head in apology. Dustin stifled a laugh and leaned against his own boyfriend, reveling in the…completeness of it all. Everything had fallen together, and despite how messy life tended to be, it had worked out alright. Everyone was a winner.

A cheerful voice chirped from the computer, "Amen to that bro, _amen_."

Cam scowled at his cyber creation, but Dustin just laughed.

It figured that even the super computer had caught on too. He should check in with Sensei later, get his take on it.

"So," began Tori, snuggling up to her boyfriend in a poor attempt to rival Dustin, "What do you think?"

He knew what she meant, but he went ahead and spouted off the first thing that came to mind anyway.

"Foursome?" He asked, looking at Cam expectantly.

The vehement "No," came from both the green and navy rangers, the latter moving away from Tori and plugging up his ears, steady mantra of _"no"_ going as though it would erase the image from his mind.

It wouldn't, but it was a nice try.

Dustin sent Tori a conspiring wink before smiling at Cam cheekily, wiggling his eyebrows. "We'll talk about it later."

This earned him a laugh from Tori while Cam continued to make a disapproving face; in background Blake was still chanting.

"_no. no. no. no. no. no. no. no."_

Dustin nuzzled his green ranger's neck as a gesture of apology and sighed, thinking over everything that had brought them here. The era of single ninjas had finally ended. There would be no more flirting, or miscommunications (about flirting), or lying to cover up feelings, or _covering_ up feelings (with flirting), or dallying, or cautious advancing. Now they would be honest, and open, and free to indulge in this other person, to _know_ them as well as they knew themselves, and to become greater people than they had been before. This next moment, this next…thing coming up, it would have it's own set of challenges, true, but with everything they had been through…

They would handle anything thrown at them just as they always had, together (eventually) and fearlessly.

Cheesy, but you needed a dose of dairy to keep a balanced diet right?

As lips brushed against his forehead Dustin knew he had been forgiven, and across the room he could see Tori finally force Blake's hands away from his ears and pull him into a hug. By the look on his face it seemed to be far more effective than his chanting had been.

So Shane and Hunter had finally gotten their happy ending. And while it was sad, because all endings were sad, no matter _what_ type they were, clearly this new moment was going to be an improvement for both of them, and hopefully…

Well, hopefully their next ending would be happy too.

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Until next time : )


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